Cut Apart
by Lanfear Lady of Chaos
Summary: What one woman must do to survive.
1. Forms of the Spears

Yes, yes. I have three works-in-progress going. Two RPs going. Well this one's different! Silklantern, the forum I use for this, has different rules, so where Joining the Gaidin must start as a trainee, here I began as an unorthodox... well... you'll see. Anyway, this character has a background. And if you're Rita, REVIEW SO I CAN FEEL BETTER! hmph Please Ritz?

Once again, only the ones written as Lavenda are mine.

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Lavenda spun around the practice yards, deftly performing her forms with two short spears. She noticed a few people had come to watch her- but she had grown used to that. The first Aiel warder. The first female warder from her people. The warder who's Aes Sedai was dead.

It hurt even to think of it. She had died, and there was nothing she could have done about it. They had come in the night...

_Lavenda struggled, yelling in rage against invisible gags of air. _No! Not Laina!..._ Solid flows she couldn't see held her tightly against the stone wall, stronger than steel. Nevertheless, she drummed her heels against the walls, her hands opening and closing futilely. Her eyes bulged, as she was forced with the Power to watch them torture her. Her eyes pried open, she sobbed silently, tears running down her dirty cheeks. If she could only reach her spears... Suddenly, one of the attackers raised a knife, and plunged it up to the hilt in Laina's chest. Lavenda screamed, her entire being in pain. _Laina! NO!_ Her limbs were on fire. Her heart was breaking apart... One of the people walked up to her, and clubbed her on the head. Darkness fell around her as the assailants left, leaving her to die by the roadside._

Tears stung the corners of Lavenda's eyes. She shook them away, twirling quickly around to face the other way. She raised a spear to drive it down... and stopped abruptly. There was someone standing a hands-width away. She blinked at them, confused.

"May I help you, Aes Sedai?" she said with a bow.

xxxx

Jacquelynn rolled the set of marbles gently across the back of her hand. She had been doing so for the past thirty minutes, and had still reached no real conclusion about the objects, aside from the fact that they were certainly not ordinary marbles. _Not that I didn't already know that. _she thought with a frustration uncommon across her motherly face.

Normally she was placid and had her emotions under firm control. It was just that...that she didn't like not knowing things. Of course, that was the entire purpose of her ajah; to discover what ter'angreal did. True, there was nothing quite like the satisfaction of solving the mysteries behind one of them, but sometimes progress was so slow that it could be quite infuriating!

Shaking her head, the Violet Sitter rose from her desk, conceding defeat, for a little while at least. Any White Sister would agree that concentration was impossible when you became overly emotional about the subject in hand. What Jacquelynn needed was a pause, an hour or so to refresh her mind and cool her frustration.

Leaving her shawl where it lay on the back of one of the chairs, the Aes Sedai left her rooms, walking at an even pace with her head high, with the good posture that all learned as Novices, enhanced as Accepted and mastered as Aes Sedai. Occasionally, she passed someone, and depending on their status smiled to them or nodded to curtseys. Several times, she actually paused to speak with another Sister, as easily distracted as any Brown!

Eventually, she did make it outside though, where the sun shone down brightly and a gentle breeze blew to keep the air fresh. It was a pleasant day by anyone's standards and Jacquelynn, who had grown up on a small farm, appreciated fine weather as much, if not more, than most of the people in the White Tower.

She allowed her pace to slow a little, her walk becoming leisurely rather than purposeful as she let her feet choose the path, guiding her down narrow pathways, through avenues of trees and around the back of the stables, leading her out towards the Practice Yards, where the Warders were training. Smiling at their dedication, the Sitter waited for a lull in the training before beginning to make her way across the grounds - she certainly didn't want to be caught in the middle of all that combat!

It seemed that she hadn't quite picked the right moment though, for she had barely gone a few meters when her head was almost taken off by one of the Warders. Smoothing her face to a form of neutrality which left no room for the tail end of her shock, Jacquelynn glanced at the woman before her. _The Aiel Warder...who lost her Aes Sedai... _The Sitter shook her head at that. She did not know how the Gaidar had survived the loss of her bondholder. It must have been a horrific experience for her, and Jacquelynn could see it in her eyes.

The woman bowed and apologized, but Jacquelynn shook her head, waving away the words. "Not at all, not at all. No harm done, and no need to apologize, Lavenda, isn't it?"

xxxx

Lavenda looked at the Aes Sedai, wondering what she was doing walking around the training grounds so carelessly. A Sitter, as Lavenda now recognized her as, was usually much more aware. Inwardly, she groaned. Not another Aes Sedai to study her or sympathize with her.

"Yes, it is Lavenda, Sitter," she said respectfully, inclining her head in acknowledgement. She hoped inwardly this wouldn't last long. When she stayed still for long, or talked to an Aes Sedai for awhile... Her heart still hurt her, and she didn't believe it would ever stop. She was even considering going to the Blight.

"You may want to consider going around the Training Yards next time, Sitter." Lavenda said, careful not to offend. "It can be... unpredictable... in here." She gestured at the pair in the corner sparring, when one suddenly leapt to the other side of the yard to continue their battle.

_Her Aes Sedai was going to die... There was nothing she could do..._

Lavenda angrily thrust the thoughts out of her head once more. _I will NOT cry in front of another, _she thought. _I already am enough of a spectacle._

Lavenda focused again, taking in her slightly thoughtful eyes in a face of cool serenity. "Is there something you would like, Sitter?" she asked, then clasped her hands behind her back. A little part of her rose up inside of her. Maybe this woman wanted her as a Warder... Someone to protect... to take care of... to fill the empty space inside.

She snorted at herself. Blood and bloody ashes. She was starting to sound like the milk-sops who were wooed by a different man every fortnight! That was possibly the most unlikely thing to happen. Ever.

She cocked her head slightly, anticipating an answer. She gazed at the sitter's face, trying to figure out what was in her head, and waited.


	2. The Blind Wanderer

Mentiri stepped into the training yards of the White Tower, for the first time in years. He felt that same majestic air about the place, and it glided all around the city.

_Where is this 'Aiel Warder' Delèndriha spoke of? I hear she is a master of the spear, far better than most other Aiel._

He walked on, sensing his way through the crowds of people. A few bumped into him. They most likely would have said something to him if he didn't a black band 'round his 'dead' eyes, but they didn't say a word. Most knew who he was. The damned warder who lost his Aes Sedai and his sight five years ago. _What a title to own,_ he thought. He heard rumors and felt them make gestures of mockery against him. He was ashamed of his failure, but his heart weighed down by his Aes Sedai's death was enough punishment. Why couldn't these warders leave him alone?

"Hey, you're him, aren't you?"

Mentiri turned.

"You're the blind wanderer."

Mentiri smiled. "Yes I am blind. And I do wander. But I do not know what you speak of." He walked on, ignoring the man. He felt a tug at his shoulder.

"Hey! I'm talking to you! Don't you walk away, son of a trolloc!" Mentiri heard a metal slice come from within a sheath, and then felt the air near his face move.

The man had drawn a sword.

"I want to see you fight! Can you even fight!?" He stepped in front of Mentiri, slashing his sword in the air. He laughed.

"Do you even know where I am?" Mentiri soaked in this man's ignorance. _Control, that's what Delèndriha and Ger'reth taught you while you stayed in the waste. Prove to them and to yourself you have that discipline!_

"Well, Are you going to fight me or what?" The man asked. Mentiri cast his 'gaze' to him, and stood still.

"I will not fight you. I fight Shadowspawn. Leave me be. I came here looking for someone." he said, anger building in his voice. _Calm... Calm..._

The man swung his sword down at Mentiri's shoulder. _Feel the current of air shift, and precise movement is upon you._ Mentiri slicked his shoulder back from harm. The man swung up at Mentiri's neck! _Your skin's touch will be your eyes._ He cocked his head back, feeling a rush of wind howl his throat. The man screamed as he stabbed the sword towards Mentiri's belly. _If angered, your opponent will become as blind as you._ Mentiri ducked and caught the blade between his hands. The man gasped and tried to force it forwards. Mentiri held him there. _Your body is lightened, because of your lessened sense. Use this to lighten the world... _Mentiri then snapped the blade in half, feeling the steel turn colder without its hilt.

"No! It can't be!" The man fell to his knees. A gust of dust and air poured onto Mentiri's legs, and Mentiri focused on every particle.

_Calm...Calm..._

"Now if you will excuse me, I am looking for an Aiel Warder." Mentiri said, sensing the audiences awe.

xxxx

Waiting for the Sitter to speak, Lavenda's ears heard a snatch of conversation. An Aiel Warder? Someone was looking for her! But why? Feeling the tension in the air, she glanced over the Sitter's shoulder. A man, with a black bandage across his eyes, was standing in front of a kneeling Warder.

_What?_ she thought._ But... that's the blind one!_ She had heard many stories about him, the Gaidin who lost his Aes Sedai and his sight in the same day. Most of those stories weren't kind. If he was looking for her... _It will have to wait a moment,_ she said to herself. It would not be wise to anger a Sitter by leaving suddenly.

xxxx

Mentiri scanned the yards. He tried to hear that distinct Aiel dialect, that soulful crispness they all bore. She was very young, by Delèndriha's description. He paced slowly forward...trying to hear for her voice, for any clue as to where she was. _Damn crashing metals...I must wait for her. Perhaps she isn't in the yards right now. I'll find her soon enough._

"Not at all, not at all. No harm done, and no need to apologize, Lavenda, isn't it?" Mentiri remembered hearing some one say that during his 'fight' with the irate man. The name of the Aiel Warder...Lavenda! He walked towards the source of these words, and prayed to the creator that she was near.

xxxx

In a heart beat, Lavenda realized that the blind warder wasn't so helpless after all. He was stepping towards her, skillfully avoiding clashing swords and sparring trainees.

_Blood and bloody ashes, I hope I don't have to choose between a Sitter and a legendary Gaidin..._

Time moved slowly onwards.

xxxx

She glanced at the Aiel woman before her, or maybe girl was a better term. _No,_ _Jacquelynn._ she told herself. _A woman of forty would be young to me! Not that I am ever so old for an Aes Sedai..._ In fact, many of the Sitters were a good deal older than her, some of them well into their third centuries and more. Of course, there were the younger ones too. One of the Green Sitters couldn't have been more than forty or fifty in age, at least not by her estimations, anyway!

_Is there anything I want?_ the Aes Sedai mused with the hint of a smile playing around her warm, weather-beaten features. _There are too many things that I want. Too many by far._ Even so, Jacquelynn sensed that their was a depth in Lavenda's question, more layers to the question than she had first perceived.

Her blue-green eyes glanced across the Warder's features once more, searching for anything in them. There was so much fierceness in them, perhaps a hint of anger, and there was resolution; a brave, strong determination in the woman. She would make a good Warder for a lucky Aes Sedai someday.

Before she could reply to the woman's question, Lavenda's eyes chanced a look over the Sitter's shoulder, and Jacquelynn turned too, following her gaze until her eyes came to rest on a man with a dark cloth wrapped around his eyes. Blindness. Something the Yellow Sisters cannot Heal?

The man was moving towards the pair of women though, avoiding combat far better than the Sitter had done even with the use of her eyes. _I truly am hopeless sometimes. Put me in a battle and I would be an absolute liability! Perhaps it is time that I considered taking a Warder...?_

Turning back to matters at hand, she waited patiently as the man made his way towards them. There was recognition in Lavenda's face, and Jacquelynn looked to her.

"Do you know this man?" she asked, knowing full well that she herself should know the man's name. _I ought to spend more time away from the ter'angreal, more time with people..._

xxxx

Lavenda tore her gaze from the Blind One once again, refocusing on the Sitter. She looked her in the eyes, having to glance down slightly. "Yes, Sitter," she replied carefully.

"His name is Mentiri. He is quite infamous; perhaps you have heard of him?" Sensing she hadn't, Lavenda continued. "He was blinded when his..." she choked up, she quickly continued. She couldn't have noticed such small pause. "...Aes Sedai was killed by Shadowspawn."

"He is mocked by some Warders, and quite a few others." Lavenda was troubled by that; how could you mock one who lived through such pain? He had not run away; he was not a coward. "But those who do not mock him, respect him deeply. He has lived through a lot; and managed to come out near the top."

"I believe he is trying to find someone. Perhaps you, Sitter?" She inclined her head respectfully, considering how to put her next words. "Perhaps you- we? Should meet someplace less..." Once again, she indicated the men dancing the spears behind her. "Crowded?"

Done her question, Lavenda discreetly studied the Violet Sitter's features. Not much was usually given away in an Aes Sedai's face, but...

A hint of indecision? Something was there, something she didn't recognize. What was it?

As she finished her thoughts, Mentiri reached them, stepping up to them smoothly. Lavenda was in awe of his deadly grace, and his precision despite his loss. He cleared his throat, and she waited for one of them to make the first move.

xxxx

Mentiri reached the source of the voice he had heard, and stood still for a moment. He was about three feet from the two women - one of them must be Aes Sedai, for that magical air about her and one must be...

An Aiel woman!

That smell of adventure and honey coated her entire body. That raging desire to dance and be free in a stricken world. She had been through a lot, Mentiri could sense it. She reminded Mentiri of himself actually, when he fought to die and sleep forever. He finally asked,

"Might any of you two women know where I can find a an Aiel warder named Lavenda? I must speak with her."

He awaited a response.

xxxx

Lavenda's eyes bugged out of her head. Her?! He wanted to see... her?! Realizing she was standing with her mouth hanging open, she shut it with a snap. Her cheeks burned bright red with shame, for letting such obvious surprise show, then deeper red for showing embarrassment. Before it went any further, she cleared her throat.

"I..." she squeaked. She cleared her throat again, redder than ever. She continued in a more normal voice. "I am Lavenda," she said with her old confidence restored. "I am honored you want to speak with me, however..." She reached behind her with her still unsheathed spears, and stopped a random blow coming towards the back of her head.

"Might I suggest a quieter place?" Without waiting for an answer, she started striding off the practice courts, by way of the edge. Being rude to a Sitter might be asking for a flogging, but letting one be killed in the middle of the courtyard asked for death.

She reached the entrance/exit that was used the least, and looked behind her, hoping that they had followed her. _Ack!_ she thought quickly. _He's BLIND, you wool-headed milk sop!_ Fortunately, he seemed to have no difficulty traversing the courts towed, or towing, the Sitter. Finally, they reached where she was.

Striding under a nearby tree with a bench under it's shady green branches, she motioned at the bench, offering it to the Violet Sitter.

"Now, what would you like to talk about?" she addressed to the air in between the two. _Let them battle out who would speak! _thought the wicked part of her.


	3. A Brewing Storm

"My message to you young one is a matter of privacy." Mentiri 'looked' towards the Aes Sedai with them. He sensed some kind of urgency but nothing catastrophically important. _Oh Mentiri, where have your manners gone?_

"There is a tavern in Tar Valon, Lavenda, called the Lester's Jesting. Meet me there when you have time. Come alone. Aes Sedai," He bowed a bit to the Aes Sedai before departing and then walked away.

_I pray that she takes my offer. Too many will die if she does not,_ he thought as he dodged the practicing warders.

xxxx

Jacquelynn followed placidly as Lavenda led them from the practice yards, away from all the potential hazards. Perhaps some Aes Sedai might have contested this, and not gone so meekly, but the Violet Sitter was not a woman to dispute simple common sense, so she tailed the Aiel woman to a small marble bench, nodding in gratitude as it was offered to her.

Carefully, she crossed her legs at the ankle and folded her hands in her lap, her hands wrapped firmly into her sleeves. Small comforts had always been the things which gave her the most pleasure in life, perhaps because she had never received many of them as a child. Even now, almost a century and a half old, the Aes Sedai liked nothing more than a cup of kaf and a fire in the Winter, or a stroll in the sun in the warmer months.

This Mentiri appeared behind her, yet he seemed to have little to say to Jacquelynn, his attention focused on the Aiel woman. She frowned minutely at this, wondering what he could possible want. As the man spoke, she rapidly deduced that her presence was not required or wanted, but she refused to move. This was her White Tower as much as it was his, and he could take Laviendha somewhere else if he wished to speak to her in private.

As Mentiri walked off, Jacquelynn allowed her frown to increase a shade. More than a touch suspicious_...what can he want with her?_ Lavenda seemed intent on what the man had said, and Jacquelynn would have dearly liked to know what the young Warder was thinking. As stubbornly blunt as ever, she turned her clear gaze to Lavenda and asked simply "Do you know what he wants with you? And more importantly, do you intend to meet him?"

xxxx

Lavenda brought her attention back to the present, and focused properly on Jacquelynn Sedai. Was she suspicious of Mentiri? _Why would she be? _she thought to herself not kindly. _Maybe she's heard the stories... It must be that she's upset at him ignoring her._ But then, there was no way for him to tell he was in the presence of an Aes Sedai.

Standing at ease slightly out from under the branches- heat didn't bother her at all- she considered the best way to explain. Deciding, she opened her mouth to speak.

"Gaidin Mentiri is a... I suppose you could say a new friend... of mine, Sitter," she began. "I don't know exactly what he wants right now, but I certainly intend to meet him. He's quite a kind fellow." Lavenda gazed at the Aes Sedai in what she hoped passed for a meek look. How was she reacting? Unfortunately, this one had the same cool, distant and unemotional look as all women in the Tower. "We agreed to meet in the city, at a tavern," she gently reminded her.

"I don't know how to explain, Sitter, but I have a distinct feeling that what he 'wants' is of the utmost importance," she continued, hands clasped behind her back. She straightened up, gathering all the dignity she could muster. "But I believe it is not life-or-death within the next few days." She considered something, a thoughtful look in her deep green eyes.

"Or maybe not even within the next few weeks," she added quietly, as an afterthought. However, she didn't want to wait that long. Mentiri... fascinated her. He, too, had lost an Aes Sedai... one that he loved, it was said. And she felt a strange bond to him, in a way words couldn't come close to.

"Is there any particular reason, Sitter?" she asked in her usual straightforward manner. She felt a liking for this Aes Sedai. There was a faint hint of curiosity in those eyes when they looked at her, but not the deep pity she couldn't stand to be around.

xxxx

_You are too hasty to jump to conclusions, _she reprimanded herself with a slight dash of irritance. It was unlike her to make any decisions quickly, and normally she waited until she knew someone properly before making a judgement on their character.

_I have been in the White Tower too long..._she mused, trying to remember the last time that she had actually left the Tower. She found it mildly disturbing that she couldn't actually pinpoint a specific occasion.

It was just that she had been so busy with internal duties. There had been a pair of Violet aspirants, Reth and Anasazi who she had mentored for a period, and that Andoran Accepted who had spoken a Foretelling in her presence, not to mention the young archer who had expected her to tell him about becoming a Warder. _Why he couldn't ask a Green Sister, I just don't know!_

And of course, there was all this horrible business of Whitecloaks that the Hall of the Tower was still in deliberation over. Moriel, the White Sitter, had called the first meeting to provoke the other Sitters into some form of action, but it had escalated into full-blown debate with the Browns and Violets reasoning for caution and the Blues and Greens demanding that something be done immediately. That matter was still unresolved, and just thinking about it gave her a headache!

Surely the last time couldn't have been when...Jacquelynn thought with a horrible lump in her throat. ...when Monet died...? It was many years since her last Warder had been killed, but even so, the memory of the Gaidar brought back emotions that she had only recently began to control. The Sitter had not realized how much she had contained herself after that. _It is time to move on. Twenty years of lurking in the White Tower is more than enough for anyone._

She gazed up at the Aiel woman, and shook her head slightly. "No, nothing in particular. In these dark days I am too easily suspicious. I am sure that he means as well as you or I do. Perhaps it is for the best that you do go to meet him. After all, you have both lost your Aes Sedai." she said.

Perhaps she was being more than a little tactless, but sometimes it was better to get these things out in the open. She had hidden her own pain for long enough, and only now realized the damage that it had done to her. Being able to accept these things was crucial.

xxxx

Lavenda listened carefully to what the Sitter had to say. A bit of it made bile rise up in her throat- no one, not even her had ever been that... obvious... about her Aes Sedai and friend... but there was wisdom in those words. Maybe it was rude- extremely rude- to speak of an Aes Sedai's age, but she must be very old to have such wisdom. Or perhaps not. Some seemed to be born with it, but certainly not herself.

The last person who had been that truly honest with her- ever- had been... Laina. Her Aes Sedai. Was that why she felt so comfortable around someone she had just met?

Lavenda could sum up all she knew- really knew, not just guessed- about Sitter Mailli on one hand. One, she was a Sitter for the Violet Ajah, and two, she was too easily suspicious. _And both from her own mouth!_ It was a good thing for those Three Oaths. Otherwise, you would never get an answer from an Aes Sedai, no matter what.

Lavenda found thinking about Aes Sedai to be helpful. She no longer winced just thinking about them, and could look at- even speak to!- one without tears or her voice breaking. She knew the pain would never go away, just become subdued, but it was a pain she could live with, like the fact she never knew her family.

Dare she think it? But maybe, just maybe, it was time to see about getting another Aes Sedai. Not to replace Laina- no one could ever replace her dearest friend- but a reason to live. Someone she could die for and not be ashamed. Someone to fill the empty hole.

But who would take on one such as her? An oddity among the Warders, different three fold from anyone else... _Oh well,_ she thought to herself. _Perhaps it is for the best._ Inside, she sighed heavily. She doubted that. _But wait- the Sitter._ Yes, the Sitter. She must speak to her.

"Yes, perhaps it will be for the best if we meet." she stated quietly, her emotions under control, face smooth as stone, but her eyes brimming with emotion.

"Perhaps... Perhaps you would like to accompany me?" Had she really just said that? What had gotten into her? But the words were out, and she would only look silly taking them back. All there was to do was wait out the inevitable storm that was brewing.


	4. Earlier

Lavenda tossed in her bed, her hair plastered against the rough woolen case of her pallet. The wooden rooms in the Gaidar quarters were cool at night, but her room was hot. Her eyes were scrunched up, her mouth moving silently.

_Lavenda ran quickly over the broken, cracked ground, her cloth-covered feet pounded silently into the earth. Covered in her Cadin'sor, she barely felt warm despite the blazing sun, her face free of perspiration. Her spears and knives thumping on her back with every stride, she relished the fresh air, and the freedom._

_Smiling broadly, she spotted something on the ground in the distance, and she hurried towards it, feeling carefree. She got closer and closer, each stride eating hundreds, until the mountains were in view. Out of the waste, she was almost upon the shapes she now recognized as humans lying on the ground, in Cadin'sor as well._

_Frowning slightly, she ran into Janghai Pass, just out of the Waste, where the rains began. Coming over a damp hill, she was on top of the bodies._

_Bodies they were. Wide-eyed faces stared back at her, their mouths frozen screaming. Blood pooled around them, ugly gaping holes carved into their torsos, their faces unearthly lifelike and untouched. They were her parents._

Lavenda sat up suddenly, her now damp face cool in the night air. Breathing heavily, she laid slowly back down, trying to push the images from her mind. It had been the same dream she had had almost every night that she could remember. The only real images she had of her parents.

_Just a dream,_ she comforted herself unconvincingly. Nevertheless, she slowly drifted off to sleep, as she had done every night, for many years.


	5. Mulled Wine and Black Tea

The breeze picked up and whirled leaves around them gently, and Jacquelynn remained sitting where she was on the marble bench. Her auburn red curls shifted slightly around her shoulders and her blue-green gaze was both deep and yet somehow innocent, as she looked up to Lavenda, a slightly curious expression on her face.

The Sitter knew when to guard her expression, and could do it with little effort. _Anything can be done with little effort if you give it enough time. _Anything...except forgetting._ That alone cannot be learned or refined. It cannot be taught and it cannot be forced, but it is the one thing I desire more than anything._

Now, however, she left her warm face open. She liked to be seen as someone that people could talk to her, and despite her office, she tried to be as involved in everyday Tower life as was possible. Jacquelynn had never been ever so comfortable with formalities and eloquence, anyway. Even the shawl and ring could not wash away her past, and at heart, she was still the Ghealdanin farmer's daughter who had spent her days looking after younger siblings, letting her nurturing nature grow. That was one thing she had never let go of, through everything she had experienced at the White Tower. During her Novice and Accepted years, she had clung to the hope that she could offer others a little comfort as though it were driftwood in a stormy sea. Even when she was safely ashore, she had taken a little chip of it with her, and had no intention of ever letting go.

She smiled ever so slightly as she watched Lavenda think over what she had said. _At least some of these Warders have as much brain as brawn!_ she thought in satisfaction. The Aiel woman was yet young, but Jacquelynn could sense a resilience about her. The fact that she had survived her Aes Sedai's death told her that much. _She won't give up easily. Admirable._

Expression touched nothing but Lavenda's eyes, but even so, the Sitter could see...everything. _Eyes really are the doors to the soul._ Her own eyes met the other woman's for a second in a moment of recognition and understanding, and she nodded her head ever so slightly.

The next development in their conversation was not at all expected, and Jacquelynn raised her eyebrows in surprise, the only suggestion of it she would freely show, and even that was a lot for an Aes Sedai. _Go with her? Why?_ she considered. _Why not?_ And with a shrug, she stood, dusting off her skirts automatically.

"The exercise will do me good." she said jovially "I would be delighted to accompany you Lavenda, and if Mentiri is disinclined to my presence...well, you'd be surprised at how quickly I can make myself scarce!" she said, a twinkle in her bright eyes.

"Lead the way, Gaidar!"

xxxx

After she processed what the Violet Sitter- _Jacquelynn_- said, Lavenda still couldn't believe it. The storm that was brewing had... turned into a mild summer day? Even though she had shown a measure of surprise at the request- as good as a shout of surprise for others- she had agreed?

Take what you get and don't complain. That had been her mantra for as long as she could remember... but she didn't feel like complaining. She felt... relieved. Yes, relieved was the word for it. Standing in front of the Sitter, she shocked herself again by putting on an easy smile.

Sheathing her spears in cases on her back- she had forgotten completely about them- she continued. Some may think it odd she carried them everywhere, but they were her equivalent of a Warder's sword, and when when did a Gaidin or Gaidar every go anywhere without their sword?

The Sitter looked... excited? _Well,_ she thought with a mental shrug, _There's always a first time for everything. Laina had always been excited..._

"I agreed to meet him at a tavern called the Lester's Jesting, Sitter Mailli," she told that ageless face. "I hope you do not mind meeting in such rough accommodations?" That hadn't occurred to her before, that an Aes Sedai might not agree to meeting in a smoke-filled tavern. However, Aes Sedai were much respected in the city, and it would be likely that most would actually enjoy her presence.

_I do hope Mentiri doesn't mind,_ she thought with a frown on her tanned face. As they left the gardens, the winds picked up, promising a chilly night. That, she didn't like. Heat, she reveled in, but cold... _And maybe I'll go to the Waste and join my rightful clan, _she thought with a smirk.

x

Lavenda pushed into the tavern, cloak pulled close against the chilly breeze. Small droplets of rain came in with them, and several patrons groaned at them, only to fall respectfully silent when they got a good glimpse of the pair, especially the ageless face of the Sitter.

Walking briskly to a table in the corner, Lavenda held out a chair for the Sitter, then took her own. The table was near the fire, Lavenda's chair being next to it. Heat. She smiled, once again in her element, and adjusted her various weapons. Spears, knives and blades were adjusted until she could sit comfortably, yet draw with a twitch of her hand. Nothing out of the ordinary; sometimes she had slept like that.

Lavenda gazed at the Aes Sedai across from her, still surprised at her own daring, but distracted. She wondered when Mentiri would arrive; and what he would tell her. Once again, she wondered if he would mind Sitter Mailli.

She hoped he would; for as short as she had known them both, she felt a bond, and didn't know what she would do if they didn't get along. Silently, she waited.

xxxx

They made their way through Tar Valon swiftly, both the Aiel woman and the Aes Sedai ignoring the rain as best they could. _And it had promised to be such a beautiful day._ Jacquelynn thought with a twinge of regret as she watched early spring blossoms being plastered back by the heavy shower. At least, she hoped it was only a shower. At this time of year, they seemed all too frequent though!

By the Lavenda led her into a comfortably pleasant looking tavern, the Sitter was certain that she looked more that a little wet and bedraggled - a state which no Aes Sedai should allow herself to be seen in. _Not much I can do about it now! _she thought, and brushed raindrops from her dress and cloak before following Lavenda through the crowded common room to a table directly in front of a large fireplace, which she was grateful to see had a roaring fire in it. Ignoring the weather was all very well, but even women of the White Tower still looked damp when it rained, and there simply wasn't anything to top the feeling of warming one's hands in front of a friendly blaze.

Lavenda drew a chair out for her, and Jacquelynn took it with a smile of gratitude and a nod of her head as she arranged her skirts neatly around her, not wanting them to dry with creases in peculiar places. A serving maiden approached them, and asked if she could get them anything. Jacquelynn ordered herself a glass of mulled wine, but decided that it would be best to let Lavenda order for herself. _I don't have a clue what Aiel like to drink...although, I'm sure I shall find out soon enough!_

After the serving maiden had left, Jacquelynn allowed her natural, insatiable curiosity to take over for a little while. At first, she was content to simply let her blue-green gaze rove over the people in the common room, everyone from merchants to Warders. It was a pleasant sight to say the least. There really was something ever so comforting about being inside in a warm atmosphere while it was raining and miserable outside!

This Mentiri had piqued her interest, though, and she wondered what he would make of her presence. In truth, she didn't really mind whether he wanted her there or not. Aes Sedai were used to making people awkward with their presence, and taking it all with a smooth face was second nature. Little fazed the good-natured Violet Sister, anyway!

She turned to Lavenda as the serving maid returned with her drink, wondering if she would get any answers from the woman. With the ghost of a smile, she noted how alert, how ready the woman appeared, so acutely so that even she could notice it. _I don't imagine ever so much could sneak up on her!_

Smiling more openly as she sipped the warm, aromatic drink, Jacquelynn asked "How much do you know about Mentiri, Lavenda? I'm afraid I don't spend enough time away from my rooms anymore, and scarcely have acquaintance with any but a few older Sisters!"

xxxx

Lavenda sat quietly in her chair, considering her answer. How much did she truly know of Mentiri? Little more than she knew of the Violet Sitter, that was certain, but... She thought on this. He was a blind warder who had lost his Aes Sedai. He had been blinded in the incident, and it was oft said that the Aes Sedai had been his lover, or more. He was as good as most men with both eyes, and had an almost supernatural ability to sense what someone was doing. Also, she felt a great bond with him, of friendship and something closer. Kinship, perhaps?

While she thought, she signaled the serving girl aside.

"Hot tea, please," she said kindly to the slightly unnerved girl. She probably didn't see many Aiel, even in Tar Valon. Not many people did. "Black." she added. Weak tea was no good, sweetened or milked. As the server curtseyed slightly and returned to the kitchen, she tried to answer the question.

"I don't truly know that much about Mentiri, Sitter," she began slowly. "But I know that he is a trustworthy man. Honest, too, I suppose." she paused, thinking of how to phrase the next part. "I know I've only met him, but I think that he is a man to which I would trust my life. Is that enough?" she questioned, abnormally blunt. She wasn't usually that pert, but when someone asked her a straightforward question, she usually gave a straightforward answer.

The girl returned with her tea, and Lavenda gratefully wrapped her fingers around it, curling to soak in the warmth. Taking a sip, she smiled. Black tea was a favorite of hers, as she didn't like expensive or rich drinks such as spiced wine or honeyed herbal teas. Pursing her lips, she watched the Aes Sedai's reaction to the question, watching also the door to the tavern in her peripheral vision. When would Mentiri get here?


	6. Droplets

Pouring.

The rain seeped forth hence, dying the grounds wet and dark. The water fled to the low elevations of the roads, and sat to think where they would spill next. Droplets sliced Mentiri's face and cloak, and he thought of how to best approach what was inevitable. _How do you tell a young girl who's been alone most of her life what I am about to tell her? What grounds does she have to truly trust me? Oh light, why must I do this, Delèndriha?_

Then Mentiri heard his Aiel mentor's words.

_"She is like you, Mentiri. She too, has lost someone. She too, has led a tragic life. It would be good of you to help someone else, for a change."_

"All I do is help others, Delèndriha!" he said aloud to the storm, "I endanger my life numerously to help others!" He saw his mentor shake her head, as if she had deeper knowledge that he must unearth.

_"You endanger your life, to die. You are not only saving those people so that they and their loved ones do not suffer, but so that you no longer have to wake, Mentiri."_

Mentiri stopped in the rain.

_"Althena loved you, and you loved her. But that is no way to honor her death for you...you have no honor left."_

Mentiri looked up and realized he was out of breath. He sucked in the wet air, feeling its dank texture coating his mouth. A gust of steam shined from his throat as he continued to walk. She was always tough _...Light, the Aiel Waste was the best thing after Althena's death that the Creator ever bestowed upon me. I have learned so much from them all, I can't wait to return with Lavenda._

Mentiri entered the Lester's Jesting, and tried to sense the young Aiel. _Well, I smell the Aes Sedai's perfume at least!_ He laughed as he walked towards them.

xxxx

For a moment, she simply regarded the young Aiel woman before her with one of those typical Aes Sedai looks - this one pensive. Then her lips curled up at the edges in a warm smile as she sipped contentedly at her warm mulled wine, while Lavenda started on her steaming hot tea. _Nothing quite compares to a hot drink in cold weather,_ she thought, glancing outside through a window streaked with rain. She could see little but a miserable grey haze with the odd darker or paler shape blurring it's way somewhere. _Lucky we got in here before the real downpour started!_

Wrapping her hands around the glass for further warmth, she nodded to the Gaidar, perfectly satisfied. Well, for now at least. As a Violet Sister, her curiosity never truly abated!

"Yes, Lavenda, that is more than enough. To feel so certain about someone despite barely knowing them is often a good sign. Sometimes, our instincts really are the best guides we have. Not that the White Sisters would agree, of course."

The door was gusted into slamming against the walls when someone entered and despite his rather drenched form, the Aes Sedai recognized the black band around the man's eyes, and realized that this was Mentiri. He needed no guidance it seemed, for after a moment's pause he made his way towards them.

Not sure if he was aware of her presence or not, Jacquelynn decided to be honest and open; something Aes Sedai rarely were.

"I am here with Lavenda, Mentiri." she said coolly, back straight as ever. "If you are averse to this, then I am sure I can rectify matters."

xxxx

"I mean no offence Aes Sedai, but I must only tell Lavenda this grave news. If she wishes to tell you afterwards, it is hers to do so. But, I will not break the oath I have made to my Wise One. Forgive me." Mentiri bowed slightly, feeling the water droplets fall to the ground and echoing a frame of the floor to him.

xxxx

Lavenda looked sideways at the Violet Sitter, wondering how she would take this. _Well, she did say before she wouldn't mind,_ she consoled herself. Turning to face the Violet Sitter fully, she made a small half-bow, still in her chair.

"I hope you do not mind, Sitter? Please wait here; unless you would like to take your leave or meet later?" she said as she smiled apologetically, trying to take the sting off the slightly commanding words. If it was that important, she must speak with him alone. But what could it be?

Rising, she made another bow, this one un-awkward and quite graceful, her fiery hair bobbing in it's shoulder-length cut. From the bottom of her bow, she looked up, into Sitter Mailli's gaze, her eyes catching the glint of the fire and throwing back it's fierce blaze at the beholder. "I look forward to our next meeting, Aes Sedai," she said formally, and straightened.

Turning finally aside, she took up a light grip on Mentiri's elbow, guiding him with her as she stepped up to the innkeeper. Asking for a private room where they could talk, and slipping a silver mark into his hand for the inconvenience, she strode to the quiet retreat.

She entered, closing the door after Mentiri had stepped nimbly in after her. She was still amazed at the skill he used doing such a simple task she took for granted. Taking a chair at the small table in the wooden room, she looked curiously at him, a touch impatient now that her questions were about to be answered.

"Well, Mentiri," she said casually, "What is so important that you must be alone to tell me?"

She leaned forward, anticipating his response.

xxxx

She nodded gravely as Mentiri spoke, sensing the sincerity in his words and nodding her acceptance. Some things were better off untold, and she was certain that this young man could judge such things with a suitable degree of discretion.

"I do not mind at all, Lavenda," she said with a smile which added weight to her words. "In fact, I will be more than glad for the chance to enjoy my glass of wine properly."

Her eyes followed the Maiden and the blind Warder as they crossed the room, spoke briefly with the innkeeper and whisked away down a back corridor. Jacquelynn had no intention of following them. Truth be told, there had been nothing hidden in her words, and a moment of relaxation would do her no harm at all!

_If they are away too long, I can always return to the Tower,_ she assured herself, with a rather doubtful glance at the miserable weather outside!

xxxx

"Lavenda, it had been difficult tracking you down." Mentiri stood facing the young Aiel girl. She seemed so, fierce but so innocent at the same time. He was intrigued. "Accompany me outside." He turned and walked to the outside, which was still blazing with wet rain. It was heavy and soaking, but he needed her outside. He stepped outside into the cold, damp night's embrace and stood, awaiting her.

xxxx

Her attention peaked, Lavenda followed the fellow Warder outside. Carefully moving as to make minimal noise with her weapons, (what most thought of as no noise) she carefully stepped onto the damp stones of the street. She shifted slightly, adjusting the metal so only a small amount was exposed to the constant rain. _Less rain, less rust._ She smiled slightly to herself, almost leaning towards Mentiri in her eagerness. What could it possibly be? For the short time since she had come to recognize what that question could mean, it had eaten up almost all of her thoughts.

Rain dropped slowly on her head, then faster, as the storm heightened. She came to face him, meeting his 'gaze' squarely. She cocked her head to the side, an old habit she couldn't break. Her ears strained for the first sound of his words as all other noises were blotted out by the downpour. The rest of the world existed only in her imagination; the rain was all. It covered her in a sheet, shutting out everything. Everything, but Mentiri.

xxxx

"Dance with me." Mentiri said, flipping his sword, 'Song' from it's sheath. Its vibrant blue steal glowed from the very ruins of Rhuidean itself, and it hummed with life. He raised 'Song' in fighter's stance, awaiting Lavenda's retaliation.


	7. Time Like Cool Honey

Lavenda started back. _Do what? Fight him?_ Could she do that? Yet without thinking, her spears were out of the case on her back and into her hands within an eye blink. She twirled them around, her nimble fingers deftly twisting to handle the turning wood. This was her guard position, an unconventional one, but extremely effective. Few managed to easily navigate the spinning circles of razor-sharp metal. She assumed a battle stance, her feet splayed. A fierce smile came to her face, and her eyes caught what little light there was, throwing it back out to the world.

She was ready.

She made the first move, leaping suddenly forward with a sweeping down stroke, the other spear cutting far below, angling around behind his knees. This was the reason the Aiel were so feared. Did he think she would be easy prey? Few managed to live past her first move. Did he think she would just submit? Emotions raged through her face as she attacked, blades moving faster than lighting.

_Let him beat that!_

And yet, she was a hair away from pulling her blows. She didn't want to kill him... and secretly, she wanted him to find a way to dodge or block both. But how? Front and back. That was her attack that always worked. It had never failed her... and yet she hoped it would.

Time moved like cool honey.

xxxx

Mentiri smiled as Lavenda attacked.

As her spears flew towards him, he slid 'Song' quickly down his back and pushed it into the earth deeply. The force plummeted him upwards, and he heard he spears clash onto 'Song.'

_She is so graceful, that move would have crippled anyone who could not feel it coming!_

While still in the air he yanked his blade from the road. Stone pebbles and dirt fragments soared out with it, and he swung his sword down at her, shredding the air into nothing as he went.

xxxx

Lavenda paused for a split second, astonished and relieved. _Thank the Creator he got away!_ But she was fighting him... This was too confusing. His un-naturally blue blade was striking down at her, and she quickly crossed her spears, bracing for the impact.

It was larger than she expected. Her arms screamed with the sudden intense pressure; but then she pushed back, sending them both flying in opposite directions. She landed gracefully in a cat's sprawl, her limps splayed. She raised a spear menacingly, then streaked forward once more. She danced the spears, cutting small slits in Mentiri's loose clothing, but never his skin.

_Is he blocking me? Or am I just subconsciously not hitting him?..._ She pressed on, slowly driving him backwards while twisting to avoid the glowing blade. He was good.

She reached forward with a spear, nicking his neck slightly. She bit her lip now, for once not finding the joy of the fight.

She backflipped, coming up paces away, again in her spiraling defense position. She beckoned slightly.

xxxx

Mentiri dodged and blocked her attacks. She was relentless, storming in a spiral of blades and cold precision. She grew quicker with each attack, allowing her to become more agile.

_She would be a true match if we were fighting to kill each other. I wonder how she will handle this..._

Mentiri swung 'Song' around him and aimed at her head. He swept up on her quickly and agily. Lavenda leaped into the air to avoid it. She grabbed the tip of 'Song' delicately and flipped herself up; she now stood on the giant blue sword with Mentiri still clutching it in the air. There was a moment when the rain ceased to fall, noises ceased to exist, and it was just them. Mentiri's arms did not buckle any under her weight; he had trained with far more. His arms straight out, he smiled.

_She is as wondrous as I heard._

He pushed the blade down hard, deepening its roots to the ground. She leapt up to avoid it, and Mentiri slashed the sword upward from the penetrated ground, the wound spewing brown and green fragments into the air. Dust shot into the air, and the sword was nearly to Lavenda's throat.

xxxx

Lavenda cartwheeled over Mentiri's head, narrowly missing the razor's edge of the blade. The grin was back. A true fight. She had always loved a good fight; it made you think up new strategies, your life hanging in the balance, a hair able to tip it either way. As he came at her again, she jumped upwards again, twisting in the air, a tornado of flashing metal.

Lavenda jumped into a crouch, jumping on the hilt of the blade. For an instant, she stared into his face, a hand span away. With his muscular heave upwards she was thrown away again, still spinning. But as she deftly countered his strokes, and he hers, she thought.

What had been in his face? He didn't look angry, or intent on killing her, rather as if this were... a test? Could it be a test? She wondered this as she stepped away from him, arm behind arm, narrowly missing the steel burying itself in her flesh. And yet that's what battle was. How to hit the other if you never came close? It was impossible; it was the reason many she had fought had died so quickly.

She couldn't help but marvel at Mentiri as he strained to strike her. He was as good as her- maybe even better- but lacking sight.

_If he's this good now, I wonder what he was like before in a battle,_ she wondered in awe. But her reverie was quickly stopped by the counter strokes he was dealing out. _Maybe he had strength, but..._

Suddenly, she dropped to the ground, flat on her back. Reaching up with her leather-clad legs, she grabbed the hilt of his sword, just above his hands, and drove it into his stomach, then out and away from his, twisting as she did so. Her spears also came up, ready if this worked- or to defend herself if it failed.

xxxx

Mentiri let 'Song' fly from his hands as Lavenda jerked it away. She stabbed inward with her spears and Mentiri instinctively batted them away with his black gauntlets. Her spears flew out of her hands. Mentiri fell to his knees; pinning Lavenda to the ground. He held her arms down with his hands and soaked in the image her quick sounds had planted in him. He could feel her air moving around him when she fought, felt her weight when she crouched upon 'Song.'

_She is beautiful..._

Mentiri slowly lowered his face to hers. He could hear her breathing heavily, the range of her steam molded a most lovely sight to Mentiri. _Her face...with her piercing fierce eyes._

"You are a marvelous fighter." Mentiri smiled as the words slicked off his lips.

xxxx

Lavenda lay on her back, frustrated. He had pinned her! Pinned her! In spite of herself, she smiled at the compliment. From her compromising position, an answer rolled off her tongue, unbidden.

"You are one of the best I have ever fought," she breathed, her air heavier from the way she was lying. "It was an honor." She shifted, trying to get the weapons on her back to stop poking her. The musty smell of wet earth mixed with the incessant rain.

_I think it was a test,_ she thought to herself. If it was, she wasn't completely sure if she passed with flying colours, or failed miserably. Hopefully not failing. She tilted her head back, seeing her spears had landed under an awning, safely out of the downpour. Mentiri's awesome sword lay beside them, but slightly in the moisture.

She looked back into his face, lifting her head until they were centimeters apart. Her neck screamed from the unaccustomed effort, but she ignored it.

"If you don't get off of me," she said, keeping her face straight, "your sword is going to rust."

A grin cracked the facade. "Plus, I shall be forced to bite your nose off," she stated, playfully nipping at the said body part, her body still stuck.

xxxx

Mentiri laughed as he released her. He sat on the wet ground and leaned over to pick up 'Song'; it took him a few tries to find his beloved sword.

"This sword, can never rust. It will never break. It's the most beautiful weapon I could have ever been given. It has become a part of me over the years, I will wield no other blade. It has saved me many times." he laid the blade across his lap, touching it slightly. "The honor is mine, to dance with you. I have been searching for you for months, it is the luck of a Ta'veran that I found you, Lavenda." He 'gazed' over at her, feeling the rain beat at his face. He raised a hand to touch his nose; it was tingling a bit.

xxxx

Lavenda, released, sat up and scurried over to get her own weapons, putting them back in their water-proof casings. Crawling back, she sat cross-legged opposite him, quite comfortable, and grinning at him rubbing his nose.

Her head to one side, she considered his blade, then stated a question that came quickly to mind, surfacing above the others.

"Ta'veran?" she asked curiously. "You are a ta'veren?" she laughed at the thought, but it was possible, she supposed. And there was the other thing he had just said. Searching for many months? For her? _Why?_ She said that last aloud, adding to the question before it. She had other questions, like who had given him his sword, but they could wait.

While she waited for him to consider the question, she felt a suddenly cool breeze, cooler than it should have been. She looked down at herself, and laughed aloud, raucously and long. There were hundreds of tiny slits in her loose clothes, the skin beneath unmarred. He was a master indeed. Or was it her that had avoided it?

Yet another question was added to the pile.

xxxx

"I have no concrete proof that I am ta'veran...you on the other hand..." Mentiri smiled again. "I've been searching for you because of some...events happening in the Three-fold land. You and I...we have many things to talk of." He stuck 'Song' into the ground and lifted himself up, using the sword to balance himself. He extended a hand to her before continuing.

xxxx

Lavenda stared blankly at him a moment before taking his calloused and leaping nimbly to her feet. Ta'veren? _Her?_

She stood beside him, waiting on edge for him to continue, her mind half standing still in shock and half racing with unknown speed. The Three-fold land. Events? _Talk? Now I'm even speaking gibberish in my head,_ she told herself.

xxxx

"I know you are eager to talk." The rain poured even harder. "But, you need rest. If you wish to hear the rest of my story, meet me in the Lester's Jesting on the morrow before first light. Be prepared to make a long journey, Lavenda, should you choose to come with me." Mentiri turned and walked away, with 'Song' slung over his back, praying she made the right choice.

_It's nearly too late..._


	8. Considering the Violet

Lavenda stood silently long after Mentiri was gone, contemplating what she must decide. It was obvious that she had to go with Mentiri, to whatever the Pattern held for her. But then there was the Violet Sitter...

_I hope it's not too late,_ she thought, pushing her tired body back into the Lester's Jesting. However, she had fought even, on less sleep and more tired than she was now.

Once inside, she shook the rain out of her hair and walked to the corner she had been with the Sitter, ignoring the patron's stared at her shredded clothes mostly empty of bloodstains.

xxxx

The single glass of wine she had ordered lasted her a long time, as it always did. Most of the time, she was left to her own devices, watching the people come and go, listening the relentless rain beating down. Every so often, one of the serving maids would appear at her elbow, a pitcher of wine in their arms, politely asking her if she required a refill. Each time, Jacquelynn declined.

In the Southern countries, she knew that the innkeepers would have asked her to leave in no uncertain terms by now. After all, she had dragged her drink out for an awful long time, and the table and serving maids could make a greater profit from others. Here in Tar Valon, so close to the seat of Aes Sedai power, few innkeepers would ask an Aes Sedai or a Warder to leave. In some cases, their presence alone was enough to attract a handful more customers!

She didn't know or care how long she had been waiting for when Lavenda finally re-emerged. There was no sign of Mentiri, yet the Violet Sitter kept the question from her face as the Aiel woman approached her. Jacquelynn's eyes spotted holes and tiny tears lacing the woman's garments. Lavenda also looked thoroughly wet.

Jacquelynn gestured for the Gaidar to sit down, and she set her own wine glass down, still half full. Smiling, she shook her head ever so slightly.

"Do not feel you have to tell me of anything that Mentiri may have told you, or you him. I will not deny that I am curious, but even so, some things should not be said."

xxxx

Lavenda sat down in the seat opposite the Sitter, grateful of the fire's blazing heat. Small tendrils of steam started to rise from her clothes as they began to dry. Graciously accepting another mug of hot tea from the serving girl that had arrived at her elbow, she leaned across the scarred table.

"To tell the truth, Sitter, I know little more than I did when I went out there," she began in a soft voice that didn't carry. "Rather, I think it was..." she paused, fingering one of the slits in her sleeve with a small smile. "A test. Although, I believe I know a little more than before." Her outward calm was unfailing, but inwardly, she was still reeling like a drunken fisherman. Ta'veren? _Her?_

A rueful grin appeared on her face as she sipped. "I believe I am at an impass here. You see, if I wish to know the rest of what he was going to tell me... I have to be here before dawn." A sad smile was now in place on her face, and she looked into the Sitter's piercing eyes. "He said to be prepared for a long journey."

"I won't lie to you, Sitter. I think we will be going to the Three-fold Land." she stated, unsure of how the other woman would react. If it was anyone but an Aes Sedai she could be sure, but under the circumstances...

She sat silently in her chair, wondering why she said the things she did.

xxxx

Jacquelynn raised a fine eyebrow ever so slightly as she watched Lavenda toying with one of the many slits in her clothes. As far as she could see, there was no blood or actual injury, just an awful lot of damage to her clothes. Idly, she wondered what kind of test Mentiri had put the woman through, and contemplated asking, before deciding that it was none of her business.

Most of the time, that didn't deter a woman of the Tower from asking questions and sticking their nose in anyway, but Jacquelynn had never allowed her curiosity to get the better of her, other than when she was investigating ter'angreal and the like. Because of the nature of her ajah's work, too much curiosity was viewed as a weakness, a weakness which could very easily get you killed if you didn't harness it in for a more appropriate time.

Sipping slowly at her wine, the Violet Sitter watched and listened intently as Lavenda revealed a little more of what had passed between herself and the blind Gaidin. _Not much, or so it seems._ Putting her cup down, she thought over the last thing that the Gaidar had told her. _The Aiel Waste..._

She had never been there herself; few Aes Sedai had, for it was a dangerous place that only the Green and Blue Sisters tended to journey through, and even they wouldn't dare without the aide of a Warder, or the support of an Aiel guide. But in Rhuidean...in Rhuidean, there were ter'angreal. The White Tower had managed to recover many of them, but Jacquelynn knew there were still more left, hundreds doubtless in a stash greater than the one under the Stone of Tear.

In a perfectly neutral voice, that barely suggested anything, she asked "That is your home, is it not Lavenda? It must be a long time since you have last travelled there. Tell me, do you think your travels will take you close to Rhuidean?"

xxxx

Lavenda sat back in her chair, lips pursed. Rhuidean. Mentiri hadn't mentioned it... outright. Any trip to the Three-Fold Land might include a visit to the mystical place; but would they? And yet, she had gotten the distinct impression that his sword had something to do with the city of the Aiel.

But what could Rhuidean have to do with a Violet Sitter? Unfortunately, Lavenda was ignorant to all the specialties of the Ajahs but the most basic, and barely those. She sighed inwardly.

Noticing Sitter Mailli's eyes following her hand, she lowered it from her clothing, a barely noticeable smile crossing her face briefly. _So she's more interested in this than she lets on, _she thought to herself. Entwining her fingers and placing her chin upon them, she replied with thought.

"Yes, the Three-Fold Land is my home," she told the Aes Sedai matter-of-factly. "but it has been a very long time since I have been there..." Her eyes turned inward as she remembered her nightly dreams of the Waste... and her dead parents. With dry eyes, she looked back at the Sitter. "So long that I barely remember it." she said.

"And yet, I feel I must go there, and if I did, it would be just like I was there yesterday. As for Rhuidean, I can't tell you for certain, but I have a feeling Mentiri has ties to the place."

xxxx

Her blue-green eyes recognized Lavenda's look all too well as the Aiel woman thought of her home. It was true that young women were forced to severe all ties to home for their raising to Accepted, and that Aes Sedai were supposed to view Tar Valon as their home, but a part of Jacquleynn was still distinctly Ghealdanin. Even now, well over a century since she had left home for the White Tower, she still enjoyed the spiced cakes and sweet wine which were native to her people.

It was strange, the things that people clung on to. The Violet Sitter was well aware that her parents and siblings would have passed away by now, and that the nephews and nieces she had never met would be running the farm she had grown up on by now. _One day I fully intend to go back there. Just to see..._

Such thoughts were unproductive though, and she pulled her mind away from them before getting completely lost. The work of her ajah should always come first now, and she had to sort out her priorities. Jacquleynn smiled slightly at Lavenda, a smile that showed an understanding of sorts, although she was well aware that the other woman's situation would be vastly different from her own.

She tried very hard not to make her request sound like an order, for the Aes Sedai knew that enough years of experience in the Hall of the Tower had a tendency to make even the simplest questions sound like commands.

"May I ask a favour of you, Lavenda? If you do happen to visit Rhuidean, could you possibly bring me back a few ter'angreal from it? There are several still there, that the White Tower has yet to reclaim, and I don't imagine that they would be ever so difficult to find.

"One day, I might go there myself, but your lands are not the kind of place for a lone Aes Sedai, especially one who grew up on a farm and knows little of survival and such." she finished with a slight twinkle in her eyes.

xxxx

She looked at the Aes Sedai carefully, searching for any hidden agendas. To make such an abrupt request- as good as an order coming from an Aes Sedai- was unlike any other she had met before. But maybe there was... Aes Sedai had a way of hiding things in plain sight.

Realizing her eyes were wide above her scarred and tanned hands, she shuttered them, relaxing her face into a semblance of calm. She sat back in her chair, crossing her arms, her familiar stubborn look coming easily now to her face. She remembered now, the whisperings of the stable boys. The Violet Ajah specialized in ter'angreal. _That's why she was interested in Rhuidean,_ she thought with a grimace.

Carefully wording what she wanted to say, she replied. "As I said, Sitter, I do not know if we are going even near Rhuidean," She paused. "But if we do... I promise I shall see if I am allowed to take any ter'angreal." There. She could be as twisty as an Aes Sedai with her words. Sounds like everything, and does nothing. "and they indeed are not," she agreed, a like twinkle coming to her eyes. "Of course, it wouldn't be a lone Aes Sedai, if you came with us," she considered, laughing. "And I'm sure any Aes Sedai is far from helpless..."

She grinned at the Aes Sedai, hoping she hadn't noticed what she had quickly said about the ter'angreal.

xxxx

Jacquelynn noted the amusement in her companion's voice as she replied to her questions and comments. _Well, I suppose I do not look like the type to go on expeditions and such._ She felt a touch melancholy at this, for once she had loved to travel, meet new people and see new places. It all seemed so long ago. Surely it was somebody else's life that she still found in her memories, for the young Aes Sedai she saw there could not be her reflection. _I have grown softer and harder, lingering in Tar Valon..._

Lavenda made her exit, as polite yet independent as she had been for the former part of the day. The Violet Sister found herself liking the young Aiel woman, maybe because she was so entirely different from herself. Whatever it was, she hoped to speak with the Gaidar again on her return, if Mentiri did not like the idea of her joining them.

For a few moments more, Jacquelynn toyed with her glass of wine, spinning it slowly between her fingers until a rather nervous looking serving maid came and asked if she could take it. With a jerk, the Aes Sedai came back to reality, not quite sure that her conversation about Rhuidean and the Aiel Waste had actually taken place.

But it had, and she knew that if first light was the time set for leaving, she had little time to waste. An unfamiliar blend of nerves and excitement meandered through her, as thought the emotions were uncertain of themselves through lack of use. Without allowing herself to become further distracted, Jacquelynn left a handful of silver coins on the table, as usual having little idea of their value, and made her way out into the relentless rain, heading back for the White Tower.


	9. Predawn

Lavenda stood silently long after Mentiri was gone, contemplating what she must decide. It was obvious that she had to go with Mentiri, to whatever the Pattern held for her. But then there was the Violet Sitter...

_I hope it's not too late,_ she thought, pushing her tired body back into the Lester's Jesting. However, she had fought even, on less sleep and more tired than she was now.

Once inside, she shook the rain out of her hair and walked to the corner she had been with the Sitter, ignoring the patron's stared at her shredded clothes mostly empty of bloodstains.

xxxx

The single glass of wine she had ordered lasted her a long time, as it always did. Most of the time, she was left to her own devices, watching the people come and go, listening the relentless rain beating down. Every so often, one of the serving maids would appear at her elbow, a pitcher of wine in their arms, politely asking her if she required a refill. Each time, Jacquelynn declined.

In the Southern countries, she knew that the innkeepers would have asked her to leave in no uncertain terms by now. After all, she had dragged her drink out for an awful long time, and the table and serving maids could make a greater profit from others. Here in Tar Valon, so close to the seat of Aes Sedai power, few innkeepers would ask an Aes Sedai or a Warder to leave. In some cases, their presence alone was enough to attract a handful more customers!

She didn't know or care how long she had been waiting for when Lavenda finally re-emerged. There was no sign of Mentiri, yet the Violet Sitter kept the question from her face as the Aiel woman approached her. Jacquelynn's eyes spotted holes and tiny tears lacing the woman's garments. Lavenda also looked thoroughly wet.

Jacquelynn gestured for the Gaidar to sit down, and she set her own wine glass down, still half full. Smiling, she shook her head ever so slightly.

"Do not feel you have to tell me of anything that Mentiri may have told you, or you him. I will not deny that I am curious, but even so, some things should not be said."

xxxx

Lavenda sat down in the seat opposite the Sitter, grateful of the fire's blazing heat. Small tendrils of steam started to rise from her clothes as they began to dry. Graciously accepting another mug of hot tea from the serving girl that had arrived at her elbow, she leaned across the scarred table.

"To tell the truth, Sitter, I know little more than I did when I went out there," she began in a soft voice that didn't carry. "Rather, I think it was..." she paused, fingering one of the slits in her sleeve with a small smile. "A test. Although, I believe I know a little more than before." Her outward calm was unfailing, but inwardly, she was still reeling like a drunken fisherman. Ta'veren? _Her?_

A rueful grin appeared on her face as she sipped. "I believe I am at an impass here. You see, if I wish to know the rest of what he was going to tell me... I have to be here before dawn." A sad smile was now in place on her face, and she looked into the Sitter's piercing eyes. "He said to be prepared for a long journey."

"I won't lie to you, Sitter. I think we will be going to the Three-fold Land." she stated, unsure of how the other woman would react. If it was anyone but an Aes Sedai she could be sure, but under the circumstances...

She sat silently in her chair, wondering why she said the things she did.

xxxx

Jacquelynn raised a fine eyebrow ever so slightly as she watched Lavenda toying with one of the many slits in her clothes. As far as she could see, there was no blood or actual injury, just an awful lot of damage to her clothes. Idly, she wondered what kind of test Mentiri had put the woman through, and contemplated asking, before deciding that it was none of her business.

Most of the time, that didn't deter a woman of the Tower from asking questions and sticking their nose in anyway, but Jacquelynn had never allowed her curiosity to get the better of her, other than when she was investigating ter'angreal and the like. Because of the nature of her ajah's work, too much curiosity was viewed as a weakness, a weakness which could very easily get you killed if you didn't harness it in for a more appropriate time.

Sipping slowly at her wine, the Violet Sitter watched and listened intently as Lavenda revealed a little more of what had passed between herself and the blind Gaidin. _Not much, or so it seems._ Putting her cup down, she thought over the last thing that the Gaidar had told her. _The Aiel Waste..._

She had never been there herself; few Aes Sedai had, for it was a dangerous place that only the Green and Blue Sisters tended to journey through, and even they wouldn't dare without the aide of a Warder, or the support of an Aiel guide. But in Rhuidean...in Rhuidean, there were ter'angreal. The White Tower had managed to recover many of them, but Jacquelynn knew there were still more left, hundreds doubtless in a stash greater than the one under the Stone of Tear.

In a perfectly neutral voice, that barely suggested anything, she asked "That is your home, is it not Lavenda? It must be a long time since you have last travelled there. Tell me, do you think your travels will take you close to Rhuidean?"

xxxx

Lavenda sat back in her chair, lips pursed. Rhuidean. Mentiri hadn't mentioned it... outright. Any trip to the Three-Fold Land might include a visit to the mystical place; but would they? And yet, she had gotten the distinct impression that his sword had something to do with the city of the Aiel.

But what could Rhuidean have to do with a Violet Sitter? Unfortunately, Lavenda was ignorant to all the specialties of the Ajahs but the most basic, and barely those. She sighed inwardly.

Noticing Sitter Mailli's eyes following her hand, she lowered it from her clothing, a barely noticeable smile crossing her face briefly. _So she's more interested in this than she lets on, _she thought to herself. Entwining her fingers and placing her chin upon them, she replied with thought.

"Yes, the Three-Fold Land is my home," she told the Aes Sedai matter-of-factly. "but it has been a very long time since I have been there..." Her eyes turned inward as she remembered her nightly dreams of the Waste... and her dead parents. With dry eyes, she looked back at the Sitter. "So long that I barely remember it." she said.

"And yet, I feel I must go there, and if I did, it would be just like I was there yesterday. As for Rhuidean, I can't tell you for certain, but I have a feeling Mentiri has ties to the place."

xxxx

Her blue-green eyes recognized Lavenda's look all too well as the Aiel woman thought of her home. It was true that young women were forced to severe all ties to home for their raising to Accepted, and that Aes Sedai were supposed to view Tar Valon as their home, but a part of Jacquleynn was still distinctly Ghealdanin. Even now, well over a century since she had left home for the White Tower, she still enjoyed the spiced cakes and sweet wine which were native to her people.

It was strange, the things that people clung on to. The Violet Sitter was well aware that her parents and siblings would have passed away by now, and that the nephews and nieces she had never met would be running the farm she had grown up on by now. _One day I fully intend to go back there. Just to see..._

Such thoughts were unproductive though, and she pulled her mind away from them before getting completely lost. The work of her ajah should always come first now, and she had to sort out her priorities. Jacquleynn smiled slightly at Lavenda, a smile that showed an understanding of sorts, although she was well aware that the other woman's situation would be vastly different from her own.

She tried very hard not to make her request sound like an order, for the Aes Sedai knew that enough years of experience in the Hall of the Tower had a tendency to make even the simplest questions sound like commands.

"May I ask a favour of you, Lavenda? If you do happen to visit Rhuidean, could you possibly bring me back a few ter'angreal from it? There are several still there, that the White Tower has yet to reclaim, and I don't imagine that they would be ever so difficult to find.

"One day, I might go there myself, but your lands are not the kind of place for a lone Aes Sedai, especially one who grew up on a farm and knows little of survival and such." she finished with a slight twinkle in her eyes.

xxxx

She looked at the Aes Sedai carefully, searching for any hidden agendas. To make such an abrupt request- as good as an order coming from an Aes Sedai- was unlike any other she had met before. But maybe there was... Aes Sedai had a way of hiding things in plain sight.

Realizing her eyes were wide above her scarred and tanned hands, she shuttered them, relaxing her face into a semblance of calm. She sat back in her chair, crossing her arms, her familiar stubborn look coming easily now to her face. She remembered now, the whisperings of the stable boys. The Violet Ajah specialized in ter'angreal. _That's why she was interested in Rhuidean,_ she thought with a grimace.

Carefully wording what she wanted to say, she replied. "As I said, Sitter, I do not know if we are going even near Rhuidean," She paused. "But if we do... I promise I shall see if I am allowed to take any ter'angreal." There. She could be as twisty as an Aes Sedai with her words. Sounds like everything, and does nothing. "and they indeed are not," she agreed, a like twinkle coming to her eyes. "Of course, it wouldn't be a lone Aes Sedai, if you came with us," she considered, laughing. "And I'm sure any Aes Sedai is far from helpless..."

She grinned at the Aes Sedai, hoping she hadn't noticed what she had quickly said about the ter'angreal.

xxxx

Jacquelynn noted the amusement in her companion's voice as she replied to her questions and comments. _Well, I suppose I do not look like the type to go on expeditions and such._ She felt a touch melancholy at this, for once she had loved to travel, meet new people and see new places. It all seemed so long ago. Surely it was somebody else's life that she still found in her memories, for the young Aes Sedai she saw there could not be her reflection. _I have grown softer and harder, lingering in Tar Valon..._

Lavenda made her exit, as polite yet independent as she had been for the former part of the day. The Violet Sister found herself liking the young Aiel woman, maybe because she was so entirely different from herself. Whatever it was, she hoped to speak with the Gaidar again on her return, if Mentiri did not like the idea of her joining them.

For a few moments more, Jacquelynn toyed with her glass of wine, spinning it slowly between her fingers until a rather nervous looking serving maid came and asked if she could take it. With a jerk, the Aes Sedai came back to reality, not quite sure that her conversation about Rhuidean and the Aiel Waste had actually taken place.

But it had, and she knew that if first light was the time set for leaving, she had little time to waste. An unfamiliar blend of nerves and excitement meandered through her, as thought the emotions were uncertain of themselves through lack of use. Without allowing herself to become further distracted, Jacquelynn left a handful of silver coins on the table, as usual having little idea of their value, and made her way out into the relentless rain, heading back for the White Tower.


	10. Laughter out of Darkness

Lavenda sat with her legs crossed at the same table as the previous night, the greyish light of pre-dawn gently filtering through the half-closed shutters. Her few small bags stood propped against her chair, containing all she owned and needed. Her weapons, those she didn't carry on her person, stood against the wall next to her bags.

She leaned back in her chair, quietly ignoring the few serving girls flitting around the tables and between the kitchen, getting the patrons breakfast ready. A steaming mug of hot tea stood in front of her, untouched. Despite the delicious smells beginning to come from the kitchen, Lavenda stayed deep in her thoughts. She had eaten, quickly, this morning after she had packed.

She had talked to Mentiri briefly already, and he had agreed to the Violet Sitter, surprising her. Life was full of surprises lately. All that was left now was to leave. And they to arrive. Picking up the still-hot mug, she sipped, glancing over the rim at the door, and absently fingering her belt knife. The door opened, and Lavenda sat quickly up.

xxxx

In all honesty, the Violet Sitter had barely slept at all, only moving towards her bed when her eyes refused to remain open a moment longer. Such spur of the moment decisions were most uncharacteristic. Jacquelynn had certainly shocked the rest of her ajah with her declaration that she might be making a journey to Rhuidean with a pair of Warders. Everything had been left in Reth's hands. The other Aes Sedai was newly raised to the position of Sitter, but Jacquelynn was confident that she could handle matters. Of course, there had not been the slightest complaint from her Sisters - several had requested to accompany her! - for the Violet Ajah could not afford to pass up an opportunity such as this for anything short of Tarmon Gai'don.

Fortunately, her habit of waking at dawn stayed, despite the fact that she had only slept for a couple of hours. Being brought up on a farm where the work started before the sun rose had helped there, she supposed, and Aes Sedai could go for less sleep than most. Even so, Jacquelynn was surprised that she didn't feel more exhausted!

Realizing that she would be late if she delayed at all, the Violet Sister dressed quickly in the simplest of green dresses, built for hard wear and traveling. She had several others like it already stowed in her saddle bags, along with some water, a notepad and writing materials. The Aes Sedai wasn't sure how much time they would have in Rhuidean, if indeed they actually visited it, but she intended to make detailed notes of everything she saw if she had the time.

Locking her door carefully, she made her way down to the stables without a backwards glance. At first, she had had reservations about taking a horse to the Waste, but a couple of Green Sisters had told her she would never keep up with an Aiel Warder without one, and Jacquelynn had seen the logic in this. She didn't have a horse of her own for she left the White Tower only very rarely, but was certain that she could borrow one from the large stables with little difficulty.

Her guess was correct for it took only a few moments for a stable boy to saddle up a handsome dark bay for her, no questions asked. Taking the reigns, the Sitter didn't bother to mount up for the Lester's Jesting was only a couple of minutes walk away. Instead, she led the docile horse to the front of the inn and tied him to the rail outside before pushing the door open.

The common room was all but empty at this hour, and it wasn't hard to locate Lavenda, especially as she was sitting at the same table as yesterday. With a smile, Jacquelynn moved over to the Gaidar.

"I hope I haven't kept you waiting, Lavenda. Have you spoken with Mentiri yet?"

xxxx

Mentiri walked the streets of Tar Valon all night after his battle with Lavenda. She had impressed him, and he was sure that the journey in the waste would not be uneventful. He regretted his agreement to allow the accompaniment of the Aes Sedai; she was not needed on this. _She was also of the Violet Ajah, probably only wants to study and take the things there. What a mockery._ Mentiri felt obligated to let her come, but was willing to have her join us.

_Aes Sedai could help here, although it is not the White Towers place to intervene this time. The Aeil need no politics or twisting of words and promises._

He stopped just before entering the Lester's Jesting and looked to the windows. He found there to be a small crowd, just like he had expected. _Hopefully the Aes Sedai didn't run her mouth off to all the other sister's about where she was going, I don't want any followers._ Mentiri entered the Lester's Jesting and felt the young Aiel sitting across from the Aes Sedai and crossed the room to stand next to Lavenda.

"Have you both eaten?" he asked.

xxxx

Lavenda looked at the Violet sister, considering. She _did_ look like she was ready for travel... and now that she was out of her fine silks, she looked quite capable.

"Yes, I have spoken with Mentiri," she told the Sister. "You might be pleased to know that he said you could come," she informed her. _And surprised..._ But how much of that willingness was obligatory?

She fell silent as the door opened again, and Mentiri stepped through. He gracefully stepped around the tables, weaving deftly to the strange pair.

She noticed a strange distaste on Mentiri's face when he 'looked' in the direction of the Sitter. _Of course. He probably knows what the Violet does... and why she must want to come._ No matter. The Aiel did not stand for Aes Sedai long; they had their Wise Ones, who quickly informed any stray Aes Sedai of their place in the Three-fold Land.

"Have you both eaten?" he asked. Lavenda nodded her confirmation.

"Yes," she informed him. Standing and stooping to scoop up her packs, she paused, turning slightly to the Aes Sedai. "Have you?" she asked pointedly. Things between these two could get off to a very rocky start if this first encounter today went badly.

She trusted the Aes Sedai, but Mentiri... she didn't know about him. Hopefully, she hadn't blurted where she was going to all her friends; or at least told them to stay behind. As much as she liked Sitter Mailli, she wouldn't hesitate to leave her side if she found a crowd of Violets following.

She looked at the Sitter, hoping for the right answer.

xxxx

Lavenda barely had time to answer her before the door opened again to admit Mentiri. It seemed that he had agreed to her company, although the look on his face said otherwise. Jacquelynn was unfazed. She had spent far too long under the shawl and ring to care what people thought of her, or her ajah's work. If Mentiri didn't appreciate her presence and wished to journey with Lavenda alone, then he had every right to say so.

Having said that, since he had told the Gaidar that she could come, Jacquelynn did not intend on giving up so soon. _A word is as good as a man's honour these days, and things in Tar Valon might be uncomfortable for him if he went back on it._ Of course, she appreciated the need for privacy, and was quite happy to ride some distance from the pair of Warders if need be, and sleep away from them at night. _I am not here to play Daes Dae'mar or cause trouble; just to find some ter'angreal, which belonged to the Aes Sedai in the first place anyway!_ Something about the story of the Jenn Aiel, and how they had apparently "failed" the Aes Sedai reached out to her. It sounded almost too much like a story to be real, yet the incredible tale _was_ real, and every Brown and Violet Sister knew it like the back of their own hand, or better!

Seeing no reason to push for ill will, she kept her voice as warm as it usually was - still lacking in the Aes Sedai tones, even after all these years! - and replied to Mentiri and Lavenda's question.

"I had a bite to eat sometime last night, although I suspect it might well have been this morning. I can eat on the way, if you wish to leave straight away?" she said pleasantly.

xxxx

Lavenda let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding, sighing with relief. So far so good. She continued the motion, grabbing her bags, and straightened, smoothing her clothes. She shouldered her packs, then paused once more, glancing at Mentiri. Should she just continue on outside? Or would Mentiri pause for the Aes Sedai's meal?

Lavenda could feel a headache coming on.

This was going to be complicated.

xxxx

"We must be traveling soon, Aes Sedai. I would have rather left last night. Eat if you must, but we must hurry." Mentiri swung 'Song' down from his shoulder and leaned on its massive hilt and blade.

She waved a hand, vaguely suggesting a negative and shook her head in a more definite sign.

"I have a few provisions in my saddle bags. It is well for me to eat on the way, if you wish it so." she said simply, and turned towards the door, imagining that Lavenda and Mentiri would want to start out as soon as possible. It certainly seemed like it anyways!

The Violet Sitter eyed their weapons for a moment, surprised to see that Mentiri carried a sword, for he appeared as though he came from the Gaidar's land. Questions for later, she supposed, before reprimanding herself for her curiosity, although it _was_ all but a requirement in her ajah!

Of course, the Aes Sedai knew that Warders were always well armed, but she found herself wondering anyway, and as they moved towards the door of the inn, she asked "Do you expect trouble, where we go?"

xxxx

She laughed, making her voice light as she stepped quickly to the door.

"Expect trouble? I always do. I believe that's why I'm still alive..." she gazed at her two companions.

"I believe that's why any of us are still alive." Laughing again to take the edge off her dark words, she swung open the heavy oak door of the tavern and inn, walking outside.

"Besides, I always carry my weapons wherever I go." she informed the Sitter. That was another thing to consider. Should she continue using her formal title? Lavenda sighed.

She twisted, securing her weapons so they wouldn't rattle while she ran. Bending over to double check her soft boots she directed a soft question at Mentiri.

"_Are_ we expecting trouble?" she asked in a voice that didn't carry.

She still didn't have answers to her many questions, but that could wait. It was easy for her to talk while she ran. While she waited, she swung her head around, trying to see if Mentiri had a horse, while the Aes Sedai readied hers.

xxxx

"Are we expecting trouble?"

Mentiri continued to walk to the outskirts of town, hoping the Aes Sedai was keeping up. _Wouldn't it be best if she didn't?_ Mentiri thought, _ I hope she is prepared for dangerous grounds and dagger-lined paths ahead, there are everything from giant serpents to abandoned traps lying in wait for us where we head. Rhuidean better not be her only reason for traveling with us. I hope they are both prepared._

"Yes, Lavenda, there will be much trouble." Mentiri stopped, waiting for the Aes Sedai to catch up. He turned to the young Aeil girl and smiled.

"I think you will do fine."

xxxx

"Yes, Lavenda, there will be much trouble."

"I think you will do fine."

Lavenda smiled at the praise. That meant a lot, coming from such a hardened man as Mentiri. Glancing back at the Aes Sedai, she grinned broadly. A disconcerted look on her face showed her frustration at being excluded from their conversation, held carefully in check. This Aes Sedai kept her emotions more on the surface than others she had met.

"I am glad you think so," she told Mentiri as they reached the limits of the city. Their pace was wide, eating ground quickly, and forcing the horse to trot. Gladly noting her equipment was making no sound, she continued.

"Is it too soon to ask why we are going so quickly? To somewhere with so much trouble?" she asked guardedly, cautious that she might be asking too much. Again, she glanced back, making sure the space between the Aes Sedai was just enough that she couldn't hear them if they were quiet.

xxxx

"Is it too soon to ask why we are going so quickly? To somewhere with so much trouble?"

Mentiri laughed at the young Aiel girl. He stooped to whisper in her ear.

"You will not have to ask me that once we are there." He raised himself up and placed his gruff hands against her shoulders. He smiled.

xxxx

Lavenda sighed aloud. She should have expected an answer like that. Of _course_ she wouldn't have to ask him where they were going when they _got there..._ But how was it amusing?

Shooting him an annoyed, pouty look, she tried to look stern, but it quickly dissolved into a grin. She swung an arm around Mentiri's shoulders- and unusual thing for her, to reach upwards- and looked into his face.

"You are a strange man."

With that, she doubled up, laughing.

Her privacy gone, she slowed the pace slightly, letting the horse catch up. Watching the Sitter eat delicately, she bit her lip, trying not to keep gasping for air.

Her giggles gone, she walked on with ease, aiming an occasional grin at Mentiri. _What was so funny before?_ she wondered, then quickly stopped to keep from snickering.

xxxx

All Mentiri saw was the darkness, but Lavenda's laughter was enough to make him see the happiness left in the world. He felt her looking at him at times, and he would always smile every time he sensed her eyes upon him. He sensed the sitter behind them still, fueling her stomach. _I can't blame her for wanting food._ Mentiri touched where his eyes used to see, and thought of how treacherous the day had been when he had lost his sight. _If I could cry I would._ He thought, stopping again for the sitter to catch up.

xxxx

Lavenda looked up at the Aes Sedai, watching her steadily eat. She, herself, found it hard to eat such a lot at once; she usually ate small bits often. She looked again at Mentiri, surprised to find him touching the black bandage stretched across his face. She often wondered how he must look with it off- did he still have his eyes? What colour would they be? Or would they have colour...

_It must irk him, being eyeless like those he so despises,_ she thought, gazing at him. Shaking her head to clear such dark thoughts, she looked up again at the Aes Sedai, studying her. Placing her hand on the stirrup so she would stay level, she slowly patted the animal's neck, stroking the soft hair absently. She bent to look around the neck at Mentiri, then realized it didn't matter if she was in view of him. Laughing at herself, she phrased a question.

"How long do you think it will take to... get wherever we're going?" she wondered aloud.

She laughed at her own joke, her voice breaking the silence that had fallen over the trio. Grabbing a lock of her copper hair, she fiddled with it, waiting for his witty answer.


	11. Bread Crumbs

"How long do you think it will take to... get wherever we're going?" Lavenda asked.

"Not soon or long enough, Lavenda." Mentiri smiled a bit and continued to slow his walk. _Light, that Aes Sedai eats a lot!_ He thought of how long it had been since he had returned to the tower and all the things in between. _Five years has it been? The wheel turns too fast for me sometimes._ Painful memories were all that struck his heart during his remembrance, and he began to slouch as he walked. Loss was the only thing to make the stone that created Mentiri crumble, and he began to breathe a bit erratically.

"Light, give me strength. Allow me to guide this girl to her destiny. Then you may take me. It is what I have wished for all along anyway." Mentiri looked to his sword.

"'Song,' you keep her safe as well. I am counting on your edge." All this was said as silent as a breath to himself, still slowly walking, hoping the Aes Sedai would finish her food.

xxxx

"Not soon or long enough, Lavenda."

Lavenda studiously ignored Mentiri's changed breathing patterns, focusing instead on walking. Whatever Mentiri's thoughts were, they were his own. But perhaps he was thinking of his past...

_Maybe, once I reach the Three-fold Land, some of the Aiel- my_ kin- _will remember my parents,_ she thought hopefully. Maybe she would finally know which sept she belonged to... She looked at Mentiri again. Which sept did _he_ come from? It didn't matter.

Listening to the sounds of the wind, Lavenda heard mumbled words, uttered like a breath of wind, coming faintly from Mentiri's direction, too soft for even her sharp ears to make out the words. Everyone had their secrets.

The day was getting hotter now, the sun proclaiming it was almost midday. She reveled in the heat, closing her eyes and turning her face to the sun.

"Do you ever give straight answers, Mentiri?" she laughed, her face still upturned.

xxxx

Jacquelynn dusted off her fingers delicately, sprinkling crumbs of bread onto the ground below her horse's hooves. Doubtless they would make a pleasant meal for some small rodent or bird later on.

Her blue-green eyes gazed up at the sun for a few moments, gauging it's position and relation to the small group she was part of. _Midday and headed East._ she deduced, which was only to be expected, for that was the direction of the Aiel Waste. Somewhere ahead of them lay the Spine of the World, and beyond that Rhuidean. The Violet Sitter had never travelled there herself, but she had spoken to a handful of Sisters who had. While their accounts varied, all of them had found the place vastly interesting, and very few of those Aes Sedai had been Brown or Violet Sisters!

Lavenda and Mentiri had slowed their ground-eating paces to match that of her horse, and she smiled as the Gaidar stroked her mount's neck. The animal's head raised for a few moments, surprised and appreciative of the attention.

Mentiri seemed to murmur something, for she saw his lips move but could hear no sound. No matter. Clearly, it was not intended for her ears, although perhaps Lavenda could pick up some of the words with her sharper hearing.

Dropping the horse's reigns, she ferreted around in her saddlebags for a few moments, coming up with a light, leather bound book with several empty pages, a sun paled quill pen and a full pot of ink. Dipping her pen carefully, she wrote a few notes in her neat, simple handwriting, lacking in the elaborate curls of the more refined members of the White Tower.

"I hope you don't mind?" she asked Lavenda politely. "I am merely writing down a few bits and pieces about this journey. A sort of travel log, if you will."

xxxx

Lavenda looked up at the Aes Sedai, tall atop her mount. Jacquelynn was writing, elegantly scribing a few words onto some paper.

"I hope you don't mind? I am merely writing down a few bits and pieces about this journey. A sort of travel log, if you will,"

Lavenda shook her head, a negative.

"It's perfectly alright with me," she stated. "I don't see any reason you can't." In truth, she was quite interested in what there was to write about. All she could see was grass and the occasional tree. _ Aes Sedai again,_ she explained to herself. She could almost be a Brown.

She squinted against the sun, looking for birds purely for something to do. None were in sight. They were traveling toward the Three-fold Land steadily, but she wondered how long it would take to get there. Or wherever they were going within those lands. Her lands. They would probably go through Janghai Pass- she couldn't see Mentiri taking them over the Spine.

_Even_ he _isn't that crazy,_ she thought with an absent grin. Or maybe he was. Time would reveal all.

They walked on.

xxxx

"I hope you don't mind? I am merely writing down a few bits and pieces about this journey. A sort of travel log, if you will,"

Taking notes?

_Probably so that other Aes Sedai like you can follow in your tracks to find the secrets and treasures of Rhuidean. Oh, the Violets were always the biggest pests! Even when I was at the Tower, they were like this. Why would they still want to rape and disrespect Rhuidean, my home, so much?_ Mentiri's face clenched a bit and focused on the roads they were traveling.

_Hmm, we will have to alter courses soon, and head into the wood. I'm sure that Lavenda will not mind._ he smiled.

xxxx

Time passed quickly, then slowly, then quickly again, depending on whether there was a conversation going on. Set at a steady pace, they carefully maintained a pace the horse could keep without dropping dead after a day or so. After a short while, Lavenda saw blips on the horizon, a vague shadow in the distance. Deciding not to say anything, they continued on, the shapes becoming clearer.

A forest appeared, darkly waiting ahead of them, directly in their path. Mentiri continued on, his feet moving in a straight line. She looked doubtfully at him, wondering how far his senses could reach.

"Um, Mentiri?" she questioned, reaching up to place a tanned, smooth hand on his shoulder. "There's a forest directly ahead of us."

She looked slightly behind them, at the horse. If they were headed into the woods, the horse would be a hindrance, and may break a leg, or throw her rider. The Sitter, in this case. The Aes Sedai may have to walk, and she didn't look like she could keep their pace for long, her feet probably soft from years in the Tower.

"Is that were we are meaning to go?"

xxxx

Mentiri 'gazed' back over his shoulder.

"Yes, Lavenda, we are meant to pass through there. And then, over the Spine of the World." _The Sitter can keep her horse until the spine, then, she will have to prove whether or not she can continue her travels with us._ Mentiri smiled as he added to himself, _Lavenda too, though she has already proven herself to me. The Spine will be terrible and horrendous, but after it's course she will be toughened and strengthened beyond any conception. She will make it._

"Come." Mentiri spoke in a voice of cold stone, entering the wood with his keen senses alert.

xxxx

Lavenda looked back at Mentiri surprised, letting a little show on her face and in her voice. The Spine? Why there? The horse would definitely be a hindrance there...

She began to voice these thoughts aloud, then fell silent as Mentiri cut her off, the silent whisperings of her unspoken thoughts hanging thick in the air.

"Come."

They entered the first of the trees. She had never liked forests; too many things- _and people,_ a part of her whispered,- could hide in the deep shadows and thick foliage. Fortunately, she had Mentiri, whom she doubted was daunted by such things as not being able to see things. However, it was one of her better abilities, and she disliked having it hobbled.

She listened quietly to the wind whistling through the leaves, faint sounds of animals and scurryings in the trees reaching her ears faintly. All normal forest sounds. The time to be wary was when the animals fell silent- that either meant bandits, or worse, Shadowspawn.

They moved deeper into the forest, the dim light of mid afternoon filtering to them, diluted and bare of its warmth.


	12. A Bad Feeling

The forest that they traversed was covered by a thick canopy of leaves, unusual so far north, where the trees were normally more straggly. Still, it didn't bother her too much. If a woman could survive the test for Accepted and Aes Sedai intact, then a dark forest was unlikely to frighten them.

For a few moments, she closed her eyes, convinced that her horse would be able to follow Mentiri's lead for a few moments without her aide. The lack of her primary sense allowed her to focus more accurately on what her other senses told her, and Jacquelynn found herself able to make out the individual cries of some of the birds in the forest. Of course, many of them were foreign to her untrained ears, but she picked out several, and noted them down. True, she was no Brown Sister, but she had grown up in the countryside, and such things had always been close to her.

Opening her eyes once more, she made a couple of rough sketches, detailing some of the trees that she had not seen before, deciding to inquire of the Brown Sisters what species they were. _Someday, my curiosity will doubtless be the death of me...!_

Lavenda and Mentiri walked on ahead, their footsteps so quiet that she could barely hear them, especially compared with the way her horse kicked up the leaves and dust scattered on the ground, disturbing small animals and insects as she went.

Idly, she wondered how far they would be going today, but decided against asking. It seemed to her that there were unspoken words between the two Aiel people, and she had no wish to interfere. _I am merely a spectator here. Until we which Rhuidean, that is. _Besides, she did not wish to make him stop earlier than he had planned. Surprisingly, she found herself enjoying the journey more than she had anticipated. It was so long since she had been away from the Tower...

xxxx

The day progressed smoothly, the group making mild and witty chat. Sometime towards the night Mentiri spoke,

"Here is a fine place for you to rest. But we may only rest three hours for now, we have much earth to travel." He set down his sword, 'Song' and pulled off his jet black cloak. He could hear a stream nearby. _I could use a nice bathe! I haven't had one since I left for the Tower, I must smell like an ox. _He heard Lavenda walking around the campsite. _Ha, she didn't help my smell much, making that fight so difficult!_ he laughed aloud and removed his gloves and boots, walking towards the rushing stream.

xxxx

They halted within the forest, settling for awhile. Only three hours... The Aes Sedai would defiantly be tried on this journey. Noting that Mentiri was off to a stream- presumably to wash up- she sat, cross-legged, and began sharpening her spears. They were too dull after her match with Mentiri- smashing them against the stones wasn't that good for the metal. Taking out a smooth stone and a polishing cloth, she bent over her work carefully, eyeing Jacquellynn from the corners of her eyes. The Aes Sedai didn't look tired, but appearances could be deceiving.

After a few minutes had passed- and her spears were razor sharp- she stood, leaving her weapons in a neat pile. She picked up her water skin, collecting Mentiri's as well, along with the spares in her packs. Asking the Aes Sedai for her bottle, she trotted off to the stream, carefully choosing a spot away from Mentiri might be.

She knelt by the water, filling the skins from the sparkling, cool water. Splashing her face and quickly scrubbing it, she walked back to their temporary camp, towing the water. Restless, she sat again, setting herself to the task of sharpening her arrowheads.

They were going over the Spine, that she knew now. She would need every one of her weapons if she was to live- or keep the Aes Sedai alive. She was beginning to understand- not agree with, but defiantly understand- Mentiri's view that Aes Sedai would be a hindrance.

xxxx

Jacquelynn murmured her thanks as Lavenda offered to refill her water bottle for her before settling back down to finish off her notes for the day. The countryside they were traversing wasn't particularly picturesque, but there was enough to keep her interested. _The Light knows, I managed to find plenty to do on a farm in Ghealdan for fifteen years!_

She closed her notebook and carefully resealed her ink pot, replacing her writing materials in her saddle bag. Carefully, she removed her bay gelding's saddle to give the animal a little more comfort, however brief it might be.

The Violet Sister propped the saddle up against one of the trees and leaned up against it quite contentedly and then proceeded to rummage around in her saddle bags for a little bread which she ate dry, leaving it out in case Lavenda or Mentiri wanted any when they returned.

Idly, she wondered what all the rush was about. Of course, Jacquelynn knew very little about the reasons for this journey, but she supposed that asking couldn't hurt, and decided to when either of the Aiel returned.

Lavenda was back first, and settled down with her weapons. It appeared that she was sharpening, but Jacquelynn knew little of weapons, never having done more than look at anything larger than a belt knife. Crossing her legs beneath her to make herself a little more comfortable, Jacquelynn turned her face towards the Gaidar.

"Tell me, Lavenda, do you know why Mentiri is in such a rush? Why is it that he wants across the Spine?"

xxxx

Lavenda heard Jacquelynn shifting, then she spoke. "Tell me, Lavenda, do you know why Mentiri is in such a rush? Why is it that he wants across the Spine?"

Lavenda rose her head gracefully, hands still holding her arrows and polishing tools. She smiled slightly, biting her lower lip. Looking gravely at the Aes Sedai, she spoke.

"To tell the truth, Jacquelynn Sedai," she said, her head cocked to one side, thinking, "I don't know."

"He said I would learn more this morning but..." She glanced meaningfully at the darkening sky, then where Mentiri had disappeared. "I haven't learned anything yet."

"I hope to find out when he comes back, or a little later," she told the sitting Aes Sedai.

"I'm guessing it's extremely important, though," she said, frowning at the bushes, "Or he wouldn't risk crossing the Spine."

"People have died doing so," she informed the Aes Sedai, "If they don't perish in the Three-fold Land later."

xxxx

Mentiri let the cool water rush past his knees and splashed it into his face with his hands, knowing his inner wounds would be refreshed with splendor and a desire to move on. He stood nude in the river, the air tickling his body and his dead eyes socking in the heard image. _It must look beautiful, with the trees moving slightly and the winds complimenting...so lovely._ Mentiri stayed in the stream longer than he had intended, maybe an hour. He stood on the side of the bank and let the air dry him off, contemplating how long it would take them to track all the way over the spine and into the waste. "I should have brought a towel!" Mentiri laughed as he still stood there naked, wishing the air would move just a little faster. _Traveling light isn't always the best thing I suppose!_

xxxx

Jacquelynn nodded slightly in response to Lavenda's comments. This Mentiri truly was an enigma, and it seemed the Maiden found him likewise, although it didn't appear to bother the Aiel woman. It was always hard to read the people from the other side of the Spine, though, so she didn't know if her estimation was correct.

_I have been Aes Sedai too long. Accustomed to knowing what I want, when I want and how it want. The shawl has changed me greatly._ The Violet Sitter decided to do her best not to be nosey. After all, it really wasn't any of her business, and if she expected other people to observe her privacy then she should do the same for them. Besides, she was willing to put up with almost anything to reach those ter'angreal. Anything that would give them the edge in the Last Battle would need careful study before it could be used safely, and for that, the Violet Sisters needed time. _The sooner we can find objects of the power, the better._

The Gaidar and the Aes Sedai conversed lightly for a while longer, until Jacquelynn eventually glanced up at the sky. Mentiri still had not returned, and time was certainly moving on now. What on earth could he be doing?

She glanced quizzically towards Lavenda once more.

"Mentiri has been gone a long time." she said neutrally.

xxxx

"Mentiri has been gone a long time," the Aes Sedai commented. Lavenda layed back before answering, settling in the long grass and pulling a stalk, setting it between her teeth.

"I suppose he has," she answered nonchalantly, chewing the blade of grass. She looked up through the branches of the gently swaying trees at the sky, noting how clear it was. That was good. There would probably be no snowstorms on the Spine, then.

She sat up as the leaves rustled, a small twig cracking. The direction Mentiri had gone in- was he back? Placing a hand on a freshly sharpened knife just in case, she glanced towards the Aes Sedai, then the bush.

"Mentiri?" she called, slightly tense, for some strange reason she couldn't fathom. These woods gave her the creeps.

xxxx

Mentiri heard something, coming from the east of him. _Is it just the Aes Sedai or Lavenda? I cannot sense a single source of the energy their body gives off. They are not close enough yet. Blood and Ashes!_ Mentiri was pretty positive it was just one of the two women, but he wasn't completely convinced. He had been attacked by a group of thieves and renegade soldiers on his way to the White Tower. He crept from the water, his body dripping and stinging in the cold air. _Oh why did I place my clothes so many paces away?_ Mentiri laughed lightly, raising 'Song' to strike whatever evil approached him, if it be evil indeed.


	13. An Uncomfortable Situation

Jacquelynn stood up briskly all of a sudden, glancing at the light and the sun's position. By her rather rusty judgment, it appeared that most of the period Mentiri had allocated for rest had been and gone. She frowned pensively at this. The ex-Warder did not seem the type to miss his own appointments.

"Perhaps one of us should investigate?" she murmured in low tones to Lavenda.

She supposed it would be better for the Aiel Maiden to go, for the Aes Sedai did not know where the stream was. _I imagine I could find it if I followed the sound, but doubtless Lavenda would be far quicker and quieter than myself, and Mentiri certainly made the impression that we have little time to waste._ It wouldn't do any good for her to wonder off into the forest and get lost!

xxxx

The Aes Sedai stood abruptly, gazing upwards. Lavenda watched uninterested, watching for Mentiri. It was past time he was back- perhaps he had gotten lost? _Not possible, _she assured herself briskly.

"Perhaps one of us should investigate?" The Aes Sedai murmured in low tones to Lavenda. She stood then as well, brushing of stray leaves. She was obviously meant to go- Jacquelynn would just get lost. It was time to look for him, anyway. Perhaps he just didn't know how long he had been gone? It _was_ impossible for him to watch the sun...

"I'll go," she informed the Sitter, more out of politeness than necessity. She moved silently into the brush, padding through the twigs of the forest floor. Nodding to the Violet, she strode quickly to where she had last seen Mentiri, listening for the smooth sounds of a stream. Hearing a slight splash, she headed toward the sound, silent as the grave. Reaching the edge of the vegetation, she reached a screen of bushes, gently pushing them aside.

xxxx

_Right there...whomever or whatever it is has gone silent, creeping along the forest bed like a canine hunter. I can't sense any familiarity to the crouching being. I hope I am quick enough... _

Mentiri reached out with his hands and pulled the being from the bushes, laying it upon the ground, his body anchored over it. He raised 'Song' high ready to strike it down. He pushed the being down into the earth, pondering who it could be.

xxxx

Lavenda was yanked from her place within the plants, thrust upon the ground, a sword hovering above her. She stared at it for a moment, uncomprehending. _Wait a minute..._

She looked into Mentiri's face, her eyes wide and breathing shallow. She stilled her movement, lying flat on her back in the dirt. _How can he not tell it's me?... _she though, concerned. _I thought he could tell... _She raised her hands above her head, surrendering in case he hadn't noticed it was her yet. As had happened in the courtyard, all else dimmed, the only things within her sight his face... and his steel.

"Mentiri?" she whispered softly, aware of the deadly blade a foot above her head. "Mentiri, it's Lavenda..." She stayed still, terrified. He could kill her right now, if he wanted. Perhaps he would have if she hadn't spoken...

"Mentiri?" she called again, her face concerned, trying to figure out what thoughts were dancing behind that black band.

"Mentiri, it's Lavenda..."

xxxx

_Oh light! Oh my...what am I doing? _Mentiri's face contorted into shock. _Lavenda? Why couldn't I sense her? Why couldn't I tell it was...oh...Delendriha, I see what you meant now when you said she would be scentless. It is the glow about her that at times sheilds her from my 'sight.' I must apologize to her! _Mentiri stood up quickly and helped her up. He set down 'Song' and put a hand to Lavenda's shoulder.

"I am sorry, Lavenda. I...my mind has been wandering as of late and...forgive me please. It was not my intention to threaten you so." Mentiri bowed his head, praying for her forgiveness.

xxxx

Lavenda relaxed as Mentiri stood, a shocked look on his face. He lay down his sword, reaching out to place a hand on her shoulder.

"I am sorry, Lavenda. I...my mind has been wandering as of late and...forgive me please. It was not my intention to threaten you so." He bent his neck then, truly sorry. Lavenda considered him for a moment, then noticed something with a little shock. Hiding a smile behind a hand- _Actually, I suppose I don't need to hide it, _she thought with a dry chuckle- she quickly strode over to a small pile by the riverbank. Picking it up, she walked back to be in front of Mentiri.

"It is all right, Mentiri," she told him gravely, trying to keep the laughter out of her voice. "We all make mistakes." She threw the bundle at his bare chest them, hitting him squarely on the collarbone. With an effort, she kept her face straight. "But you might want to get dressed." With that, she fell over backwards, rolling on the ground and howling with laughter.


	14. A Seed of Romance

"It is all right, Mentiri," she told him gravely, trying to keep the laughter out of her voice. "We all make mistakes." She threw the bundle at his bare chest them, hitting him squarely on the collarbone. With an effort, she kept her face straight. "But you might want to get dressed." With that, she fell over backwards, rolling on the ground and howling with laughter.

Mentiri would have looked down at himself if he could see, but he suddenly became very aware of how cold the wind was on his bare body. _Blood and ashes, how did I miss a detail like my clothes being off my body?_ He smiled as he heard her beautiful laughter and asked as he put on his clothes.

"Is it really that funny?" he laughed, as he slipped on his breaches.

xxxx

Mentiri smiled as she rolled on the ground, not even a hint of a blush staining his cheeks. "Is it really that funny?" he asked with a chuckle as she pulled his breaches on calmly. She sat up, staring into his face. _I suppose I did inherit my humour and modesty from my parents, _she thought wryly. Lavenda folded her legs carefully, smoothing the cloth over her hips.

"Yes," she said finally, mastering the laughter echoing in her voice. "Yes, it is." She stood then, moving to a side and tracing a cool finger over the outlines of his chest muscles. "It's alright though," she said softly. "I don't mind..." With that, she whirled around and trotted back to the bushes she had entered through. Pushing aside the branches, she paused, glancing over her shoulder.

"You should be more careful in the future," she told him with humour rich in her voice. Then she was gone, moving smoothly back to their temporary camp. _Why did I do that?_ she thought wonderingly. _He sure has nice muscles, though... Stop that!_ she ordered herself firmly, then shook the thought off. The Aes Sedai's probably worried, she told herself briskly, and arrowed towards her.

xxxx

Mentiri smiled as he heard Lavenda giggle and walk away. He suddenly felt something from her... That touch from her, it felt so...exclusive. _I wonder what it all meant?_ Was it attraction? Did he feel something for her as well? He pulled on the rest of his clothes and joined with his sword once more.

"Oh light, Mentiri, just remember the mission!" he said to himself as he heard his mentor Delèndriha say in his mind:

"Emotions will weaken you now, Mentiri. Do not indulge them. Especially after this!"

xxxx

Lavenda purposely crunched branches noisily as she approached the camp, determined not to scare the Aes Sedai into attacking her. Two in one day would be too much, she laughed to herself. Brushing aside a last screen of bushes, she stepped into the clearing.

"Mentiri is coming," she told her, surprised her face wasn't blazing red. She began to gather the few things she had, sheathing a few daggers and gathering her arrows. Fastening the quiver to her waist, she slung her pallet to her back, ready to leave. Straightening smoothly, she cocked her head to the side, listening.

"Here he comes," she told the Violet, hearing a small twig snap behind the bushes.

xxxx

Mentiri slung his cloak and shirt over his shoulder and walked away from the beautiful smell of the water. He held his sword 'Song' by the blade as he walked back to the camp. His senses guided him, and the air touched his skin in the right direction.

Toward Lavenda.

_I'm trying not to think of her in an attractive light, Delèndriha, I truly am!_ Mentiri walked into the camp and sat on the leaves, placing his shirt, cloak and armor on the ground next to him. He kept 'Song' in his hand, and heard her moving around in the backdrops of their campsite.

_But it's proving to be futile._

xxxx

As Mentiri entered the camp, Lavenda faced away from him, concentrating on what she was doing. _I'm not hiding. I just have things to do in this direction..._ Casting a look quickly around, she came across a problem; there was nothing left to do. Holding back a disgruntled sigh, she turned towards the other two.

"So, shall we be off?" she said, abnormally cheery. _Milk brained chit!_ she cursed herself. _You've liked men before!_ She looked around again, spotting the crumpled area they had entered the clearing, then turning to the opposite side. Striding to the border of the trees, she looked back.

"Well?" she said, her voice back to normal. A tiny, calculating look had appeared on the Violet's face, and she forced herself to not glare. _Aes Sedai... _she sighed mentally. _They will never change... always meddling._


	15. Battles

Mentiri 'glanced' over at Lavenda, noticing she had things to do in that direction so he turned to the Aes Sedai and took note of her writing things down in a notebook. _Hopefully the circles we took in the forest will keep anyone from knowing the true path that was taken in here._ He smiled, feeling a tender wind touch his open skin. Mentiri stood, hearing Lavenda say something; but he wasn't focusing on it, he was focusing on...

"Aes Sedai, Lavenda, something's coming this way!" He spoke as he slashed out his sword.

xxxx

Lavenda stared at Mentiri's face, which had grown tense. _What in the light?..._ Suddenly, he whipped out his sword, yelling that something was coming. _Light!_ she thought quickly, unstrapping her spears with one smooth movement. Within seconds they were twirling in her hands, her face a mask of stone. A low, guttural call echoed through the forest, answered by another, and another. Her chest grew tight with anticipation as she turned on the spot, watching for movement. Instinctively, she moved towards the other two.

_Trollocs?_ her mind supplied as she waited. _Here?!_ She shook her head slightly. _No time for that. Focus on the fight at hand..._ A low grunt sounded in a bush to her left, and she flowed to meet the enemy.

xxxx

Mentiri followed Lavenda's beautiful scent; it left a trail that any man could follow. They both crouched in the bushes, hearing their advancing enemy grow ever so closer. Mentiri focused his senses in the direction at hand, the direction the enemy was coming from.

_One, two, three, four....five.....five pairs of feet are pacing this way, two larger ones in that five. I'll probably have to handle those two._ Mentiri gripped 'Song' tightly and begged the winds to stop just a little so that he could hear better. He gazed over at Lavenda, smiling at the thought of Delendriha saying:

"Mentiri Da'gere Swayton, you must keep this girl out of harms way. For if you don't I fear the worst."

Mentiri smiled at what Lavenda would have told him if had tried to stop her from fighting. _ Might miss a few teeth, I would._

xxxx

_I can't believe I didn't sense them... or at least hear them!_ Lavenda berated herself. A reason came unbidden to her mind; it seemed the abilities gained as a Warder were dulled- even lost- when the bond was severed. She could hear the branches crackling under careless feet and hooves now. Five, in this direction. Maybe more somewhere else. A quick glance from the corner of her eyes found Mentiri smiling- _What's there to smile about?_ Yet his smile was infectious, and she soon found a like look on her face.

Suddenly, a black-feathered arrow hammered into the trunk beside her, a bare span from her head. She sucked in air sharply, and silently leapt forwards. Her weapons spun in her hands, slicing the foremost creature to ribbons, but she was careful to stay behind it in case the archer could see her. It would do no-one any good for her to die here, now.

Sound behind her alerted her of Mentiri's own attack, but she couldn't look, a Trolloc leaping over it's fellow's body to slash wildly at her. She nimbly dodged the attacks, only nicked once by the tip. "Bloody leaves," she growled under her breath at the forest. Another wickedly barbed arrow whistled over her shoulder, so close she could feel the wind. She peered ahead as her foe fell. _I have to find that archer,_ she thought, crouching behind a log for shelter.

xxxx

Mentiri sliced Song in the air quickly, splitting an arrow in half. In the same stroke of his blade he blocked an oncoming Trolloc attack. The Trollic had an Eagle's face and bull horns decorating it's persona. Mentiri felt the drool from it's smiling mouth spurt out as it roared, tainting the ground and grass.

_Where is Lavenda!?_ Mentiri grit his teeth as he pushed the huge trolloc back with all of his might. _Wait, stop! Don't panic! Remember Delendriha! Focus! _ Mentiri pulled Song up before him, his muscles coiling the weapon to the point that it felt it might crack.

_I am the winds._ Mentiri saw the trees before him, the soil.

_I am the winds._ Mentiri saw the winds circle and begin to form mists.

_I am the winds._ The mists began to move.

_I am the winds._ The mists grew solid, and the trollocs were blinded to Mentiri no more. He felt Lavenda somewhere deep in the battle, her ferocious beauty radiating in her every strike. He swung Song and screamed in triumph, knowing this next blow would slay the Eagled-headed Trolloc.

xxxx

_Blood and ashes, how many are there?_ she thought frantically, cutting at a hoofed pair of legs that had appeared under the log. An all too human voice screamed in pain as her blade slipped effortlessly through muscle and tissue, the monster collapsing to the ground as its legs were rendered useless. _And why?_ Without her wanting to, her thoughts slipped back to the conversations she had had with Mentiri, seeming years ago in a tavern long forgotten. _Tav'eren._

A slight yelp escaped her lips as steel whistled through the air behind her, the haft of her spear barely catching a black blade. _Blood and..._ She dropped to the ground, rolling beneath the log as the Halfman's tainted steel sliced through the air again, cutting into the wood. Almost before the weapon rose again, she was on her feet, facing the Eyeless. A scream of triumph from a true human throat moved her head as she peered to the side. Suddenly, the unseen archer was in the side of her vision, aiming a wickedly-curved bow at what had been the back of her head.

Flipping backwards, she kept her spears to either side, guarding against the unknown. She came up, rolling, and twirled to face the enemy.

An arrow jutted from the eyesocket of the Halfman.

She gaped. What were the chances? Darting in, she sliced at his chest, taking no chances for him to strike back before beginning to die.

xxxx

"Aes Sedai!" Mentiri called out, actually fearing if the Aes Sedai was still living or not. He felt his enemies and he called on his powers of sense to aid him in his battles, freeing his mind to the serenities of the calm.

_I am the winds._

'Song' ate it's way through four enemies at once, it's fierce battle prowess becoming even more apparent to all of the trollocs as it became deeper in the fight. Mentiri smiled; smiles were one of the only things that Shadowspawn and The Dark One had not taken away from him. He looked over at Lavenda...

_They won't take her away form me either!_ Mentiri ran towards her scent, swinging along as he went.

xxxx

Lavenda was already searching for the archer as the Fade fell from her blade, wounds crossing its chest as it thrashed, unwilling to give up life. A flash of movement caught he eye and she spun in time to see a piece of ragged black cloth disappear behind a bush. _Got you,_ she muttered to herself, sprinting silently towards the Trolloc. _I hope it didn't see me... but it must have!_ She slowed, approaching the spot she had last seen it. Drawing an arrow silently from the quiver at her waist, she nocked it, drawing the string to her ear.

_Light help me,_ she quickly prayed, and turned to look beyond the tree trunk, pointing her bow. Lavenda drew back just as another arrow whistled by, thudding dully into a tree just beyond her. _So it's waiting for me..._ She dropped to the ground without a noise, crawling on her belly until she was almost in range of the other archer. In one fluent motion, she dipped forwards, aiming upwards at the creature's throat. _Got it,_ she thought with a smug grin as the Trolloc crashed to the ground, her missile protruding from its throat.

xxxx

Jacquelynn stood up slowly as Lavenda and Mentiri unsheathed their weapons. She remained quiet herself, embracing saidar without rush. Although the Violet Sitter was not the kind of Aes Sedai to get into battles regularly, her limited experience and the testing she had undergone to receive the shawl had more than taught her the lesson of keeping a cool head.

The sound of footsteps became evident to her untrained ears a few seconds after they had reached the two Warders, and even though the Ghealdian woman could not tell how many came, she could at least gauge the direction, which was something she supposed.

Lavenda and Mentiri had ghosted off into the woods it seemed, for when Jacqui looked back to where they had been she saw nothing but air and forest. The noise of combat reached her, muffled by the dense foliage. Aware that she would most likely get herself killed if she ventured from the clearing and into darker places where she would neither see nor hear an approaching enemy, the Aes Sedai mounted her gelding to give herself a height advantage and backed him towards the corner of the clearing furthest from where the little battle seemed to be taking place.

A handful of minutes passed by, the tension in the air mounting with every second until it seemed that lightning might strike from the sky at any moment, regardless of whether she wove it so or not. At length, a beast-snouted head appeared in the clearing. It started at seeing her, and Jacquelynn thanked the light that she had been given such a sensible horse. The trolloc raised it's weapon, but it was a good score of paces from her and it's wielded a heavy axe. _No good to it at this range._ she thought with considerable satisfaction.

Not being gifted in saidar by any means, Jacquelynn wove a simple mesh of air. It was a weave any Novice would know, only intensified by several fold. As though picked up by a strong gust, the trolloc was flung sideways into a tree trunk, his head connecting with a dull thud. He fell in a crumpled heap, limbs splayed in all sorts of unnatural directions.

The Violet Sister's eyes flickered to shadows moving in the forest but she did nothing, not knowing if they were friend or foe. _I hope this ends soon..._


	16. Life is a Dream

_One more down... but how many more to go?_ Lavenda wondered as she turned away from the dead Trolloc, searching for her next target. It was then that she saw Mentiri, the black cloth around his eyes splashed with something even darker. He was looking in her direction, and running. _Fool man, I can take care of myself,_ she thought sullenly, but she relieved he seemed unhurt. _Yet. You can't take anything for granted in a battle,_ she said to herself, repeating a saying she remembered hearing often from Aiel she had met. She sniffed the air, smelling only a few faint Trolloc stinks. It was from the direction of one of those that a crossbow bolt shot, weakly thudding into the bark of a tree. It held, but barely. _Not that close,_ she though.

She moved towards the archer, moving further away from Mentiri as a result. _The archers are the most dangerous of all, in this territory,_ she thought. _You can't see them until you're dead. And then you can't see._ With a dry laugh, she moved closer. Crouching behind a few bushes, she peered into the dim light, searching for her target. _There._ A back was to her, goat horns curling past the helmet. Cloven hooves stamped restlessly as the animal looked around nervously, holding it's crossbow more as a gesture than a true weapon. _Ignorant idiots,_ she thought mirthlessly as she sprung forwards.

"No!" came a desperate call from behind her. _What? Mentiri..._ But it was too late. As her spear slid into her prey, making it scream it's too-human scream, motion sounded behind her, from the direction she had come. She had no time to marvel at the planning of it, too complicated for the simple mind of a Trolloc- _They were upwind!_- as she turned, desperately trying to ward off the attack.

It was then that fate turned against her, and she tripped, sprawling on the ground. She tried to raise her spears, but too late. _Always too late..._ Metal pierced her, the rusted blade of the first Trolloc stabbing into her stomach. She bit her lip, drawing blood, as it stabbed a lung. She convulsed, unable to draw breath. _No... I will not die! Not here! Not now!_ But she was helpless as two more blades pinned her arms to the ground, and the first blade rose above her heart.

"No!" The cry came only a split second before a figure crashed through the Trolloc, taking it's blade with it. _Mentiri..._ He was a blur of motion, striking down the enemies within moments, although it seemed their blades touched him. As her vision clouded, she looked towards him as he killed the last one, sinking to his knees, breathing heavily. Her eyes met his, and then all was dark.

xxxx

Nothing entered the clearing after that single trolloc, and Jacquelynn assumed that the beasts were tracking down Lavenda and Mentiri. She wished there was something she could do, but knew that her presence would be more of a hindrance than a help. Besides, they were probably perfectly capable of looking after themselves.

Only...well, this battle seemed to be going on for an awfully long time. Jacquelynn shielded her eyes as she gazed upwards through the canopy, gauging the sun's position. This was no random encounter if it could take so long. Either the trollocs had been tracking them, or the trollocs had encountered them on their way somewhere else. Neither was a pleasant thought. _This many trollocs this far south is never a pleasant thought._ Grimly, the Violet Sitter sat her mare and waited as patiently as she could. Somehow, her normally infinite reserves of tolerance seemed to be wearing thin.

After another handful of minutes had painfully inched by, there was silence for a few seconds and then an anguished scream. _That was Mentiri!_ she thought with shock. A second of indecision brushed her mind, but Jacquelynn wasted little time in heading in the direction of the sound. Her aide was doubtless better than nothing. _Light, but let them be alright..._Her talent with Healing was close to non-existent.

She had not gone more than a few paces into the forest before she met Mentiri. He face was ashen and Lavenda was cradled in his arms, lifeless. The Aes Sedai put a hand to her mouth.

"You should not have moved her..." she chastised with little energy, slowly taking in the depth of the woman's wounds. They were far beyond her capabilities. "Lay her down over there. Put something underneath her head."

Saidar leapt to her command as she wove Healing weaves as dexterously as she had ever done. The added incentive seemed to add strength and confidence to her weaves, but she was no Yellow Sister and knew Novices who had better talent than she in this area. Quickly, she dismounted from her horse and knelt by the Gaidar's side. She did not move and her breathing seemed shallow. Mentiri leaned over anxiously, but she waved him away, gesturing vaguely that he should protect the borders of the clearing. The last thing they needed now was a trolloc attacking them.

She laid the Healing weaves over Lavenda, her hands on the woman's forehead as the wounds slowly knitted up. At least she would lose no more blood now. Jacquelynn knew that it was not enough though. Lavenda would die by sunset if she didn't get more help. _If only we were closer to Tar Valon..._

The Gaidar's eyes flickered open and her breathing became more sporadic as she regained a slightly consciousness. _I will not let her die!_ Anger touched the Aes Sedai's features, and the rare emotion looked out of place on her gentle face. A thought crossed her mind, slowly at first, but building momentum as she thought it through. _No...I could not...but it may be the only way...even so...Light, but should I...?_

Lavenda's eyes seemed to be growing cloudy, and Jacquelynn realised that there was no time. She spoke clearly but quietly so her words did not Mentiri. Not yet, anyway.

"Lavenda, your wounds are too great for me to Heal. I have done what I can, but it is not enough. I...am sorry." Aes Sedai were not used to apologising, but it seemed appropriate. "There is one last weave that I could perform, but I do not know if you would want it. Perhaps it would save your life, but I am not certain."

Jacquelynn took a deep breath, her composure well and truly gone.

"Lavenda, I could bond you as my Warder."

xxxx

Lavenda battled against the darkness, not willing to accept oblivion, and death. _I'm not dead yet!_ she screamed silently. But despite all she could do, she seemed to be drifting furthur away from... herself... the way you slipped from a dream into deep sleep, or how everything seemed in slow motion as you fell. _Isn't that all life is? A dream? What if I don't want to wake?_ Then, something seemed to catch her, and she stopped falling. Not going back 'up'... just... stopped. Then she moved up a little... just a little.

Light flooded her vision, and she realized her eyes were open. _What? But- ah._ The Aes Sedai's face floated into view. She frowned slightly, trying to focus. _You stay still, hear?_ she told the image as it dipped and weaved. She drew breath jaggedly, blood bubbling in her lungs.

A trace of a smile appeared. _Just my luck, to be stuck with an Aes Sedai who can't Heal well,_ she thought wryly. Just as she began to give up, to accept her fate, Jacquelynn's lips moved, and Lavenda fought to listen.

"Lavenda, I could bond you as my Warder."

Her mind reeled. Serve this Aes Sedai... whom she had only known a little while... serve until she died, or until Jacquelynn died, and then go mad of grief. To devote the rest of her life to one person. Her life before the Aes Sedai's. Her spears, belonging to the other. And yet, there was only one answer, to her. She had lived for this. She would live for it again.

"Yes," she whispered, tasting the metallic taste of blood. She coughed, sharp pains stabbing into her chest like hot knives. She bit her cheek, focussing on the small pain. She must stay awake.

"Yes." With an effort she didn't know she had left, she raised an arm, pressing her fingers to her lips, then the Aes Sedai's. "I am yours," she breathed. Her arm crashed unceremoniously back to the dirt. _Hurry,_ she mentally urged the other woman, as the woods grew darker again._ Am I closing my eyes, or dying? It doesn't matter._

_Hurry._


	17. Friend or foe?

For several agonizing moments, Jacquelynn thought that it was too late. Lavenda's eyes flickered weakly but she did not speak. The Aes Sedai shook her head, her eyes on the ground. _So young, so brave...so brave..._ Anger welled up in her heart, an emotion that she was not familiar with, and for the briefest of seconds, she wished she had chosen the green shawl so that she might tear apart those responsible for this.

"...Yes" The Ghealdanin woman looked up, meeting Lavenda's eyes, misted with the pain from her injuries. "Yes. I am yours..." the Aiel woman finished and her eyes closed with a finality that was un-nerving. If Jacquelynn had been a more emotional woman, she was certain she would have been in tears. Even as she was, the Sitter was touched by the honest sincerity in the Gaidar's gestures and words. _These Aiel, they have courage beyond expression._

Time was of the essence, though, and she wove quickly and far more neatly than she had ever done. The unique weave of spirit flowed easily despite the fact that she had been shown it only once. Every newly raised Aes Sedai was shown in a single time, and it burned it's way into their mind so that it was memorable beyond all other weaves, even the ones that were used everyday, or those that had been learned for the Aes Sedai test.

She didn't even pause before laying the weave over Lavenda's mind, tying it off with that impossible knot that only she could undo, aware that every second might count for the Aiel Warder. Instantly, she could feel the other woman in her mind, feel the excruciating pain that she was suffering and feel the way she fought for her life._ Do not give up now, Lavenda..._

xxxx

She sucked in air sharply, her eyes flying open as the weaves settled around her. Taking another breath, she noted her breath didn't seem to rattle so much any more. _I'm... whole again..._ She could feel Jacquelynn in her mind, where before Laina had dwelled. _Yes. I was made for this, I know it._

Lavenda's eyes fluttered open again. Her lips curved upwards once more, and she looked up for the first time with her new Aes Sedai. She felt Jacquelynn's mind, and her calm nerve, even now. And... concern. _For me._ There was comfort in the thought, an elixir that soothed her wounds. _My wounds,_ she was reminded. _I have time, yet. But I will not live past dusk without a Healing._ It was a fact, not an opinion. There wasn't even despair attached. Maybe a small bit of urgency...

As if sensing her thoughts, the Aes Sedai leaned over again, placing a cool hand on her moist brow. _Moist? But I never sweat..._ A moment later, she arched her back as the Healing flowed through her again, the cold scouring out the pain. She closed her eyes as she felt her insides writhe and knit back together. As always, it seemed to last an eternity, but was only seconds. When it was done she relaxed again, her bloody cadin'sor resting on the dirt.

"I'm extremely tired," she informed Jacquelynn, grinning. "And rather hungry, although I think that can wait." Then she laughed, and coughed, relieved to find no more blood in her lungs than had been there already. Lavenda tried to sit up, mildly annoyed at finding her muscles unwilling to cooperate. "Definitely tired," she said, and promptly fell asleep.

xxxx

With the bond now firmly in place, Jacquelynn could feel of something of Lavenda in that little knot in the back of her mind, that place that neither Aes Sedai nor Warder knew existed until it was filled by the wholeness of the bond. The Aes Sedai smiled, although a very slight melancholy touched her mind as she realised how different the Aiel woman was from her previous Gaidar, Monet. _I had thought that I might have forgotten enough of her by now..._In the Violet Sitter's mind, a door clicked shut and another one opened and she felt that it was finally time to release the memory of Monet once and for all. _Goodbye, my friend._

Right now, Lavenda had to be her priority though, and Jacquelynn hoped that would never have to change. She began to weave another Healing weave, and realized with a slight start that she was subconsciously adjusting it to better suit the injuries her Warder have. The Aes Sedai had scarcely even delved the woman! _This bond certainly has it's benefits! I suppose I have forgotten the many perks over time..._

Lavenda went to sleep only a few moments later, seeming slightly frustrated that she felt the need to do so. In truth, the Aes Sedai was also tired - from stress, she supposed - and looking at the sky, she saw that night was coming on. They had both ridden and fought today and it was surprising how time could fly when you weren't enjoying yourself!

She decided that before sleeping, she might as well prepare something for Lavenda to eat when she awoke, not being certain how much good even a sleep would do her. _It may take a few days before she is recovered completely, although I could not say is exactly. She is Aiel _and_ Gaidar, both of which seem to have a remarkable habit of cheating death!_

Ferreting around in her saddle bags provided some corn meal, which she promptly heated up with water and a handful of spices. There were a few strips of dried meat too, but that was pretty much the rather sorry extent of traveling rations. Wishing there were more, she placed what she had managed to prepare a couple of paces from Lavenda, wove a simple ward around them to alert her if any Shadowspawn came near, and then went to sleep herself._ I'm not as young as I used to be!_

xxxx

Lavenda slept long, but not deeply. Dreams haunted her. Her face twisted, a grimace on her face.

_Lavenda ran quickly over the broken, cracked ground, her cloth-covered feet pounded silently into the earth. Covered in her Cadin'sor, she barely felt warm despite the blazing sun, her face free of perspiration. Her spears and knives thumping on her back with every stride, she relished the fresh air, and the freedom. _

_Smiling broadly, she spotted something on the ground in the distance, and she hurried towards it, feeling carefree. She got closer and closer, each stride eating hundreds, until the mountains were in view. Out of the waste, she was almost upon the shapes she now recognized as humans lying on the ground, in Cadin'sor as well. _

_Frowning slightly, she ran into Janghai Pass, just out of the Waste, where the rains began. Coming over a damp hill, she was on top of the bodies. _

_Bodies they were. Wide-eyed faces stared back at her, their mouths frozen screaming. Blood pooled around them, ugly gaping holes carved into their torsos, their faces unearthly lifelike and untouched. They were her parents._

That one always came back. It replayed over and over in her mind now, burning the backs of her eyelids. Other old dreams haunted her; the night her Aes Sedai was killed- _No. Murdered,_ a part of her murmured. Others. The previous day; hot knives stabbing into her body, driven by an ugly half goat face. Mentiri, gazing into her eyes as she stood on his blade. Older memories, of laughing in the sunshine with her Aes Sedai, and fighting by her side, and for her.

When she woke, it was a relief, and yet she wanted to fall back asleep, experience again the oblivion of her happier days, and avoid the pain of now. _The hole in me has been patched,_ she thought. _I have a purpose again._ A surge of joy came through with that realization. _Yes. I have a purpose._

She opened her eyes slowly, contentedly, slightly shocked to find bright afternoon sun filtering through the boughs of the great trees. Bracing herself with an arm, she propped herself up, gazing blearily around her for a moment. The Aes Sedai's horse stood nearby, miraculously untouched, and her spears.

A bundle of clothes shifted on the other side of the clearing- Mentiri. Jacquelynn was nowhere in sight, and Lavenda began to look for her- until she remembered the bond they now shared. She closed her eyes and pointed at the Violet, just for the thrill of it. Feeling Jacquelynn moving closer now, she stood up without too much effort, leaning against a tree._ Food_, she thought, and jerkily began walking towards the packs. They, too, seem almost untouched. Only one lay split open. Finally regaining her grace, she sat cross-legged, grabbing a large piece of hard bread and gnawing on it, as the Aes Sedai entered the grassy area.

xxxx

Three days passed before Lavenda opened her eyes again. Three agonizing days that lasted longer that seemed possible. Mentiri and Jacquelynn rarely spoke anymore than was necessary. He had nothing to say to her, and likewise was true for the Aes Sedai. An ethereal calm enveloped the grassy clearing and only the sleeping Gaidar's expression told that all was not peace and serenity.

Even so, Jacquelynn had no doubts that her Warder would recover. Through the bond, she could feel the Aiel woman's strength returning to her, even with whatever fitful dreams she had. Disquiet seeped through to the Violet Sister, and she wondered if the younger woman would speak of what she had seen in her sleep.

Practical and quick to settle, the Sitter spent the extra time well enough, making notes in her journal of the events which had befallen the little traveling party. From time to time she would venture outside the clearing, sometimes with Mentiri and sometimes without. Her horse grew restless with all the waiting and she thought it only fair to let him stretch his legs from time to time. Some of the mess left by the battle she also cleared up, amazed at the number that the two Warders had managed to kill.

It was on the day that she finally finished clearing up the battleground that Jacquelynn returned to find Lavenda standing, although the bond had already informed her that her Gaidar was conscious. A half-smile spread across her face without her realizing it as she returned to their base.

Glad to see the young woman tucking into some food she remained silent for a few moments, noting the smile on Mentiri's face; the first he had worn in days. When the Gaidar had eaten a suitable amount and still probably had room for more, Jacquelynn sat down on her cloak and spoke at last, breaking a quiet which seemed to have lasted forever.

"So, Lavenda. I am glad to see you have returned to us. How are you feeling?" The Aes Sedai shifted slightly, not sure if now was the appropriate time for her next question, but it had to be asked. "Do you wish to continue, or return to Tar Valon...?"

xxxx

_  
_It took a long while for the hunger in Lavenda's belly to be sated, but it seemed to her only minutes. She straightened at last, brushing a few errant crumbs from her clothing. Lavenda blinked. _Oh my... I_ was _hungry, wasn't I?_ Fortunately, she hadn't seemed to have eaten their entire store. As she cleaned herself up a little, Jacquelynn sat down, speaking her words loudly into the silence.

"Do you wish to continue, or return to Tar Valon?" her Aes Sedai asked abruptly, as if she did not really want to. Lavenda started; a blink of her light eyes. _Return to..._ She hadn't thought of that before. _Silly, that's because you had no need to..._ Mentiri sat silent, the smile she had seen before gone. A bandage lay on his side, and a scabbed-over cut made a long line on one forearm. _Of course, I know now she only has a small ability in Healing._ Mentiri's face was blank, no hint of emotion on his face.

She turned back to Jacquelynn, truly uncertain for one of the few times in her short life. She didn't like to leave things undone. But...

"I cannot continue, not right now anyways," Mentiri spoke softly. "Though I could catch up easily if you continue on." He fell silent again, staring into her eyes. Lavenda bit her lip, her eyes darting from her Aes Sedai to Mentiri and back again.

"Jacquelynn Sedai," she said at long last. "I am your Warder now. If you order me to do something, I will do it. And even if I would not..." she paused. "You could force me," she said, gathering momentum. "However, I truly believe we should continue... Why, I do not yet know." She shot a glance at Mentiri. "But if you decide we may carry on, I will consent turn back if Mentiri has not caught up to us once we reach Dragonmount." _I'm sorry, Mentiri,_ she thought, _But there's no point in that dangerous journey without you!_ Lavenda fell silent, watching her bond holder carefully.

xxxx

Jacquelynn smiled slightly, a hint of approval in her placid expression. The Gaidar had spoken as she had expected. The Aiel people rarely gave up easily.

"I shall follow your counsel, Lavenda. Of course, I will not pretend that you recommend the option that I would wish to choose anyway." Her face hardened a touch before she continued. "However, I would never force you to anything, Gaidar. Order you, perhaps, but never force. Such manipulation is frowned upon by most Aes Sedai at current, and I am sure you will agree that a free mind is more useful than a puppet."

Ethically, the Sitter disagreed with using the bond to compel as well, but now was not the time to enter into a discussion of moralities. The sun was well risen, and they should be on their way if they wished to make any progress at all that day.

The Aes Sedai cast one last glance over to Mentiri, loathe to admit that there was nothing more that she could do for him. Her patchy Healing would make sure that the wound did not open up again or infect. In her opinion, he would probably be able to travel lightly in week or so, but she was no Yellow Sister by a long call and saw no point to making predictions she was unsure of.

Turning to her packs, she began to bundle everything up again, appreciating the activity after so many idle hours.

"Come, Lavenda. We must make haste." she said airily.

xxxx

The words from Jacquelynn reassured Lavenda, though she had always known that the Sitter was not one who would force anyone to do anything. Not without a very good reason, at least. Mentiri still sat by his tree, a bitter smile on his face. _Being left behind is hard. But sometimes there are things you must do..._

"Come, Lavenda. We must make haste," Jacquelynn said, turning to collect her belongings. Taking her cue, Lavenda in turn bent over her pack and began gathering what little she had. Her spears, she noted with content, were well polished, cleaned of the corrosive blood of the Halfmen and the stains of the Trollocs. They gleamed softly, the edges keen. Her bowstring was coiled in her back once more, and most of her arrows were in her quiver. Strapping it on her hip, she stood, placing the spears onto her back with old ease.

She strode quickly over to Mentiri, bending over to clasp his forearm, the discomfort of a few days prior gone. "Fare well, Mentiri," she spoke quietly. "Catch up quickly." Blinking fast, she flowed smoothly to a spot by Jacquelynn. _I shall see him again, you milk-brained slop,_ she told herself sternly. With one last look back, and a nod from the Sitter, they began to travel into the woods, towards the Spine.

_I will..._

"Jacquelynn Sedai," she said aloud once they had gone a little ways, "I just wish to thank you. I know I would be dead right now if not for you... and the Healing must have been quite a strain." She smiled upwards, towards the woman she had pledged her life to. _No one will take her away from me, not this time,_ she thought vehemently.

"Although I wonder what you would have done if I had said no?" she wondered aloud. I wouldn't be here, that's what would have happened, and of my own foolishness too...And then there was still that matter of the Trollocs laying a trap. That would require much further thought. But not now.

xxxx

Jacquelynn sat her dark bay patiently. It was difficult saying goodbye to friends. She had learned that lesson a long time ago. Being an Aes Sedai was hard. Watching friends and family grow old while one stayed young was not a pleasant experience, watching your time fade away and being forced to adapt to the new. For many women, becoming Aes Sedai was a window into a beautiful new life, but the Ghealdanin woman would have been just as content to live out her days on the farm back home. _I should have got rid of such thoughts a long time ago. Got rid of them when I got rid of saying farewell..._

A tinge of sadness washed through the newly forged bond to her and she turned her attention to securing her saddlebags, giving Lavenda and Mentiri a few moments of as much privacy as she could. Mentiri would get better. She knew he would. Her Healing had done enough for him to give his own body the energy to repair itseld and the man was strong in more ways than one. He was every bit as dangerous as the Aiel Gaidar.

The younger woman was at her side in a heartbeat, looking up to talk with her as they walked out of the clearing and began to follow a deer track through the dense forest. Every so often, they came across a mark of the battle; a few droplets of , scratched on the ground, or tufts of thread caught on a branch. The trolloc bodies were gone though. Jacquelynn had seen to that in the many hours that had needed occupying while she waited for Lavenda to wake. It had been touch and go whether she would ever rise again, even with the bond, and relief still flushed the Sitter's mind that her Gaidar had made it through. _To fight again..._

"What I would have done...?" she glanced up pensively, letting her horse pick it's own way. "I would not have bonded you against your will, Lavenda, that is for sure. Instead, I believe I would have done my best to Heal you...and made you as comfortable as I could. There would have been nothing else I could have done."

They walked in silence for a few minutes, and Jacquelynn was sure the Aiel was slowing her stride so the horse could keep up. She wondered if Lavenda would want her to release the bond now that she was healthy again. If the Gaidar asked, the Aes Sedai would not refuse. And yet she hoped it wouldn't come to that. _I have not know her long, but Lavenda will make a good Warder, and a good friend._

Lavenda looked up suddenly, and her horse snorted. Jacquelynn tilted her head and after a few seconds she caught the scent of woodsmoke. _Who else would be out here...?_ The other woman would probably be able to tell what direction it was coming from.

"What do you think?" she asked softly, "Friend of foe?"_ Should we approach it, or should we stay away? _Part of her wondered if someone else had been caught out by the trollocs, and another part of her wondered if some of the trollocs had survived.

xxxx

She nodded, satisfied. She had known that, most likely. But it would have been a foolish decision regardless, to die pointlessly when others had need of her. Then hers would have been a death without honor, and partially her fault if either Mentiri or Jacquelynn had died after. Although she wondered if they would have continued on without her...

_Well, not having Mentiri doesn't seem to be stopping us,_ she thought dryly. _Us. I could get used to that once more... And I will._ Just then, she smelled something that made her head snap back up. _Woodsmoke, from the South. And a faint sound.... Talking, perhaps?_ She couldn't quite make it out. _I usually wouldn't be able to hear them anyways... not lately._ A thrill ran through her when she remembered her senses were sharpened now, after what had seemed to be centuries of a blunt world. _That's not the matter at hand. Focus, Lavenda,_ she scolded herself. _Remember your duty._ A second later, Jacquelynn spoke.

"Friend or foe?" Lavenda paused for a moment, indecisive. Normally it would be no problem for her to get close enough to the camp to check...

"I'll go," she said, already checking to make sure her weapons were silent. "Stay here, and try to keep the horse from whickering," she patted the mare's velvet nose. "I'll make a call-"she cupped her hands, making the shrill of a owl she remembered from her childhood- "If they welcome us to their fire. If not..." she shrugged. "I'll come back." Waiting only for a nod from her Aes Sedai, she strode swiftly away, being careful to stay downwind, the smoke getting thicker.

_Could be Trollocs,_ she mused as she stalked closer, bent slightly. _Or thieves. Or even a simple travelling party, like ourselves... though we're not quite that simple._ Finally, a soft glow appeared between a few leaves. The fire. _Hmmm..._ Crouching behind a dense bush, she parted a few leaves with her hand, being mindful of dry leaves.

A glance revealed a small group, huddled around the fire despite the warm weather and light of the day. They seemed to be a mixed band; a few had the hard eyes of a bandit or a thief, another was in a faded cadin'sor, and another had a slender sword topped with a tarnished heron, although it looked fake. Most alarming, one of the men in the circle, who's back was to her, wore a tattered white rag that she immediately recognized as a Whitecloak. Even if he was a deserter... better to be sure. Lavenda trotted back in the direction she came, listening for sounds of pursuing footsteps. None came.

Coming upon Jacquelynn, she quickly related what she had seen. "I don't know how friendly they are- but most definitely dangerous. The one with the heron sword, no matter how fake, still knows how to use that blade."


	18. A Cat to her Wolf

OOC: I'm sorry, but I feel, due to a few reviews (not necessarily in this story) to reinforce the fact that ONLY Lavenda (in this case) is mine, and only her point of view is written by me. This is merely a documentation of an ongoing RPG.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Jacquelynn waited patiently for her Gaidar to return. Through the bond, she could feel slight tension and awareness, although the latter had been present ever since the younger woman had woken up. It was strange to feel another sharing her mind again after so many years. _How many must it be? Over a hundred years perhaps...?_ The thought shocked her slightly and Jacquelynn found herself surprised at how she had let the years slip away from her. There was something comforting and somehow "right" about having someone share her mind again, even though there was always the fear of letting them stray into danger. Like now. _Lavenda can take care of herself just fine without me worrying about her like a fussy hen!_

And sure enough, the Aiel woman returned after only few moments, moving so silently that the Violet Sister was only aware of her approach because of the bond. Her father had once taught her to track and move quietly in the countryside around Tallan, but never anything like the complete silence that Lavenda managed to move with. Jacqui shook her head slightly, wondering how Warders did it!

She listened attentively as the Gaidar told her of what she had seen and frowned pensively. _What would such a motley group be doing out here in the middle of nowhere?_ Her curiosity rose hopelessly, however hard she tried to suppress it. It was all but a requirement of the Violet Ajah, but it could certainly be irritating at times like these.

"You say one of them was wearing cadin'sor? Were they Aiel? One of your clansmen? Did they look on good terms with each other?" she asked rather quickly, then shook her head slightly and smiled, "Forgive me, Lavenda. I always have too many questions.

"The important one, I suppose, is whether they had anything to do with the raid of three days ago. I find it difficult to believe that they would have seen nothing if they have been travelling in these parts. Trollocs hardly move as silently as Warders. I _do_ want to know why we were attacked. Trollocs will fight anything they feel like, but Mydraal are normally more picky. They don't attack without a reason..."

For a moment, she paused in her thoughts. The Shadow must have had some reason to attack them, but was it she or Lavenda or Mentiri that they were after? That question was one she would never be content to leave unanswered. It was simply too dangerous.

"As my Warder, I ask you, Lavenda, do you think it would be safe to approach these people?"

xxxx

A tickling itched at the back of Lavenda's mind, a sensation familiar to her despite such a long time without it. _Curiosity… So similar to_ her, _is my new Aes Sedai. My new friend._ A barrage of questions quickly stilled her thoughts, and she held back a smile. Violets were almost as curious as Browns, in some ways.

"They don't attack without a reason…" _But the reason was me,_ she thought. _At least if Mentiri is to be believed. And I think he is, though wether what_ he _ thinks is right or not I may never know._ It _was_ a good question, though. This Sister had a good head on her shoulders. She ought to, for she didn't seem one new to the shawl. The group would at least have heard the Trollocs… maybe even done battle with them. A few had seemed to have bandages, but skirmishes were normal for bandits. _If that's indeed what they are…_

"Safe…" she mused. "As a group- no. They may not be practised bandits, but something has driven them to it- or something like it. My suggestion would to get one alone, out of earshot of the others if possible. One alone is more likely to speak of his fellows than a group bent on looting and plunder.

"In answer to your earlier questions, though," she said, her light eyes twinkling, "I don't know if they are Aiel, or if they were my clansmen." _Though even if I had seen their face I wouldn't have known,_ she thought without bitterness, surprising herself. "A few look like they have alliances, but temporary ones; all seem wary of the rest.

"One alone would most definitely talk," she said, nodding and finalizing her decision._Unless that one really_ was _Aiel. They would not talk, then. I'll just have to make sure I don't catch that one…_ Her body tensed, ready to leap into action at a word.

xxxx

"One alone will talk..." she murmured half to herself, aware of very little but her own thoughts. That always had been a flaw of hers. Once her mind caught track of something, she scarcely even noticed her surroundings. _All the more reason to have a good Warder around._ she thought with a slight smile as she watched Lavenda.

Her feet itched for Rhuidean and the ter'angreal that still remained there - _Although who knows if the Aiel will let me take them ore not._ - but she wanted to know why they had been attacked, and her good sense told her that this was a wise thing to investigate.

"I could wrap them all up in air, I suppose." Jacquelynn said softly, "That probably wouldn't make them particularly talkative, though, and I would rather not be on their wrong side unless we have no choice."

She smiled slightly to herself. Once, it had been thought that the Ghealdanin woman would make a good Grey Sister with her love of peace and ability to smooth over conflicts. It had quickly become apparent to the mediators of the Tower that Jacquelynn wasn't nearly forceful enough for their liking!

"If you could get one of the bandits on their own, or perhaps the man with the heron-mark sword, then we might be able to find out what they know. I doubt anyone wearing the attire of the Children of the Light would desire to converse with an Aes Sedai and her Warder, and I know all too well that an Aiel would be unlikely to talk, even if pushed."

She paused for a moment, considering. "I am sorry to ask so much of you, Lavenda, but I feel this is something too important to ignore. Besides, they might pose a threat to Mentiri, although I am sure he is still well enough to keep himself out of harm's way. Is there anything I can do that would help? A distraction or somesuch? Or would you simply prefer that I stay out of the way?"

xxxx

As quickly as she had tensed, Lavenda relaxed, or what passed for relaxation among her people. Few others would consider it so. _She is not so high-strung as you, girl,_ she told herself sternly. _Perhaps she'll succeed in calming you down!_ Some thinking aloud, a small smile… there, she had reached a decision.

"A distraction…" the Aiel woman mused, colouring slightly at the thought of Mentiri. "Yes, that would be most useful…. Especially if that one was really an Aiel. Those brought up in the Waste itself seem to have the senses of a fox." She smiled to herself. She had learned that part the hard way; no matter her own natural abilities, people from the Three Fold Land itself were always ahead. _Except not anymore,_ she thought to herself, able to almost hear Jacquelynn's heartbeat.

"Would it be possible to do something to their campfire… a lot of rather thick smoke, perhaps, and a loud bang? Something like that," she pondered aloud. "At just the right moment… as soon as one leaves the fire and is out of site will be ideal. I'll take care of the rest," she finished. Raising an eyebrow, she shot a suspicious glance in the Aes Sedai's direction. "And not from too close either; any one of those men may be able to sense you if you're within ten spans," she said. _Look at me, already an over-protective housewife…_

Nodding to somewhere in Jacquelynn's direction, her eyes already glazed with the thrill of battle, she stalked silently into the brush, intent on her prey. The blademaster would be simple enough to get alone; people with that much 'power' were usually full of their own pride, ignorant of any real danger. A few noises from behind him would ensure he volunteered to check it out. She grinned wolfishly, and crept the last few paces to the screen of brush. "Here, kitty, kitty, kitty," she whispered into the air, and scuffed the dirt gently, watching the man closest to her swivel his head. Licking her lips, Lavenda moved back slightly, cracking a branch with her hands. Another swipe at a bush…

The man with the heron-marked sword spoke softly, and stood. Whirling around to face her, he strode off purposefully. Crawling back from the camp, Lavenda kept her eyes fixed on him, making a few small noises now and then to keep him coming until she couldn't see the camp. _Any second now…_

xxxx

Lavenda vanished into the bushes; it was only a handful of seconds before Jacquelynn could no longer see the Gaidar, although she felt her presence clearly through the bond. The Aiel woman always felt ready and aleart, but now the crackling tension in her was tangible, almost like a long bow drawn to within a hair of breaking point. The Violet Sister also sensed an undercurrent in her Warder...a sense of excitement. She shook her head slightly at that, a smile of astonishment on her lips. _These Warders!_

Quietly, she dismounted and tied her bay to a sturdy tree branch. Fortunately the gelding seemed like a sensible animal and she left him in full confidence that he wouldn't do anything silly while she was away.

In her mind, Jacquelynn tried to picture herself back at home, playing those childish games of hiding and seeking each out. She could still remember the static atmosphere as her siblings crept around on silent feet, trying not to alert each other to their individual presences. _Perhaps I ought to think of something a little more serious....still, it's as close as I've ever been to moving with subtlety!_

It was only her incredibly slow pace that assured silence on the Aes Sedai's part, and even then, she followed Lavenda's warning, taking herself no closer than she had to. The moment the Sitter caught sight of smoke and the flame beneath it she stopped and pressed herself up against a tree, peering round its trunk so she could see her target. Out of the corner of her eye she saw movement and sussed whoever it was had taken the Gaidar's bait. Satisfaction flowed through the bond, and Jacquelynn decided that now was evidently the right time to manage that little distraction that Lavenda required.

More quickly than she was accustomed to weave - caution was a simple neccessity among Violet Sisters - she wove fire and spirit together, focusing them on the already burning campfire the rag-tag group before her had managed to get started. With a final twist to the weaves, she detonated the weave and within the space of a second the small flames were ten feet high, flaring up with a heat so intense they were white. Weaves of air scored the clearing and smoke and fallen leaves billowed outwards in all directions. The shouts of the men reached her as they stumbled backwards away from the fire. _Hopefully that will do enough for Lavenda to work her brand of magic!_ Jacquelynn thought, a raised eyebrow and a slight curve to her lips marring the smooth Aes Sedai expression as she slipped back into the depths of the forest.

xxxx

FWOOM! A pillar of smoke clear to her eyes bloomed back in the clearing, and she leapt forward. She had her hand on the man's sword before he even realized she was there. She tossed it aside like a venomous snake, however, and drew her own spears. The look of arrogance on his face quickly turned to one of terror at her bared steel and cadin'sor. _He's not even a real blademaster,_ she thought with disgust, curling her upper lip behind a black veil. _When did I put that on? No matter._ Seizing his upper arm so he could not run, she drew him close, pressing her spear to his throat and trying not to smell the stale alcohol and sweat that he reeked of.

"If you even try to _whisper_ for help," she hissed, masking any trace of humanity in her eyes, "You will be dead as soon as you can blink. Faster." Staring straight into his eyes until Lavenda was sure he understood her, she rose slightly, careful to make sure they were out of sight of the camp. In the confusion, it would be a long while, perhaps hours until they noticed he was gone. Longer still until they thought to look for him. "Move," she spat, and shoved him before her, making a point of keeping her steel on his neck. Speechless with fear, he did as told, and they were soon moving quickly through the trees. _Cursed loud man,_ she thought, wincing at each snapped twig. _Good thing all those idiot men are yelling._

Lavenda dragged him the last few paces, eager to know what information he held. "Easier than breathing," the Aiel told her Aes Sedai, and sat the filthy man down on the forest floor. Squatting in front of his face, she waved her weapons menacingly. "Do exactly as she- we- ask, and no harm will come to you. From us, at least…" She smiled wolfishly. "And to be perfectly honest, I think that we're the only ones you need worry about at the moment." The thief- if he was one- nodded, his eyes wide and he rolled them to look at Jacquelynn, her, and back to the Aes Sedai.

"Now," she said, sharing a satisfied smile with her Aes Sedai, "To begin with, who are you, and why are you in these woods with such a mismatched group?"

xxxx

The man cleared his throat, croaking slightly, and then said something that was so concealed by stuttering that neither Aes Sedai nor Gaidar had any hope of making out what he was trying to say. Jacquelynn shook her head slowly. Even her saidar enhanced hearing could not make his words coherant.

She exchanged a brief glance with Lavenda, the bond helping with the comprehension. The Violet Sister had no intention of asking the Aiel woman to back off or drop her guard in the slightest. They couldn't afford the risk that this man might be bluffing his fear. _Oh, I'm certain some of it is real. I just can't be sure how much._ The Aes Sedai smiled wryly, wondering just how terrified she would be if faced with a lethal Aiel warrior and Aes Sedai. _Probably every bit as much as out friend here is!_

"Come now," she said lightly, her tone the soft chiding she used for Novices who didn't seem to be trying their best or concentrating properly, "That's not such a difficult question is it? I strongly advise that you answer, my friend. It would not be...prudent to irritate my companion."

A smile touched her lips, but for once did not get anywhere near her eyes, which hda turned to chips of tiger's eye. The man whimpered slightly, and Lavenda grinned, still perched before him with her spear points making any movement on the man's part all but impossible without doing himself some rather serious damage. Her saidar enhanced senses picked up the raw scent of his sweat and she wrinkled her nose slightly, doubting that this man had ever earned the right to even _touch_ a heron marked sword, never mind possess one. Her smile broadened slightly; a cat to Lavenda's wolf.

"My name is Jensen Arner!" he spluttered, tripping over his tongue with every syllable.

The words seemed to release every inch of tension in his body, and Jensen slumped hopelessly, eyes flickering across the ground as though searching for some new enemy. "I am of the Dragonsworn! We are travelling north to meet the Lord Dragon!"

His coal black eyes begged her to believe him, but she was not convinced. Lavenda's thoughts echoed her own through the bond. Jacquelynn opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by the sound of pounding footsteps and ragged breathing. She looked up sharply and followed Lavenda's gaze.

Bare seconds later a man burst into the clearing, this one with a knife at his hip. The Sitter thought she recognised him from the campside. His dark hair streamed behind him, fragments of ash trapped in it. A large burn mark ran up one of his arms and his hands were over his eyes. _Someone was sitting rather close to the fire._ she thought, sharing a raised eyebrow with her Gaidar.

The man stumbled over a root and lay scrubbing at his eyes, still gasping for breath. She sighed and wrapped him up in air. A stifled gasp escaped his lips before she gagged him and blocked his ears.

"It will be most interesting to see if your stories match." she said with a smile, "As you were saying sir?"

xxxx

_Yes. We can't let this one go._ Although she was certain Jacquelynn couldn't hear her, the meaning was obviously conveyed. She wouldn't be lowering her spears any time soon. _I hope this man is as weak-minded as he seemed…_ A smile and a few words was all it took to make him reveal his name. _Pitiful. I haven't even nicked him…_ Nonetheless, she moved her spears closer, the metal resting lightly on his neck. There would be no lies told here. Words continued to spill forth from the wretch's mouth.

Dragonsworn? _Disgusting. Only a wetlander would think of swearing themselves to someone they've never met._ She looked at her Aes Sedai quickly, guiltily. _Excepting a few, of course. But something about his story doesn't smell right…_

Within moments, a way to check his tale presented itself. Another man now lay in the clearing, helpless and senseless. "As you were saying, sir?" Lavenda nudged the man with the tip of her spear, drawing a single drop of blood.

"Aes Sedai can smell lies, boy," she hissed, trying not to breathe through her nose, "And they don't like the smell. Don't like it in the least bit…" She drew another single drop of blood, emphasizing the point. Tears began to course down the man's cheeks, and the Aiel woman's lip curled upward in distaste. "Coward!" spat Lavenda. "Speak, or lose your tongue!"

"That's just what I've been told, I don't know if it's true! Someone offers you safety and a purpose and you don't ask questions… I swear I don't know!" His outburst over, the man slumped in his bonds, sobbing.

"Woolhead," Lavenda muttered under her breath, sharing a look with her Aes Sedai. He was gagged with air, and the other man's ears and mouth released. "What do _you_ know, man? It had better be a more satisfying answer than your friend here's, or…" she trailed off ominously. This one, however, was either very brave or very stupid, for he just stared defiantly back at the two women. The Aiel threw her hands up to the heavens. "Light save us from stubborn, woolheaded mules of men," she breathed.

"Alright, just listen, then," she said, crouching now by the dagger-wielder. She took the knife from his pocket, fiddling with it. "I have no patience left, so for every lie I so much as _think_ I here, you loss one body part. An eye, a finger… I want you to answer every question we have. That's _it_. Nothing less." Lavenda gave the equivilant of a mental wink to her Aes Sedai through the bond. She slid the blade close to his ear, slicing off a lock of hair. "_Nothing_ less, you understand?" His eyes less hard, he nodded ever so slightly. "Good."

She looked at Jacquelynn, waiting for her to ask her questions.


End file.
